Shattered Worlds
by EbonyVergil
Summary: Now an A/U. Starts a year before the start of Volume 1 and goes beyond Volume 3. Ruby Rose has just completed Crescent Rose and wants to take it out for a test run with her friends. However not all goes as planned and what starts as an easy task of grimm-slaying, becomes a desperate fight for survival. Second story has begun.
1. Shattered Worlds 1

Signal Academy, a school on the island of Patch for budding young huntsman and huntresses. A school filled with children who would one day grow up to join the fight against the Grimm. The vile creatures of darkness hellbent on humanity and faunus' destruction.

One such huntress was racing down a quickly emptying hallway. She was a small petite girl, fourteen years of age. Although the girl was wearing a school uniform, she was also wearing a red cloak with a hood that was currently down. The girl's hair was black with a tint of red and there was an excited smile on her lips. Her name was Ruby Rose and she had finally built the most amazing thing ever.

She rounded the corner and spotted Richter Bremen, one of her best friends, grabbing his backpack out of his locker. Richter was about her height, slightly taller with slicked-back medium-length dark hair, he wasn't too muscular or too thin and his eyes were the darkest shade of brown in all of Signal. Almost black really. Like Ruby, he was also in school uniform, though he had taken the tie off and thrown it in his locker. Richter hated school uniforms.

"Richter!" She shouted excitedly. Ruby saw Richter's dark eyes widen in surprise at her sudden appearance. "You need to come to the workshop right now!"

Richter sighed as he closed his locker. "What is it now Ruby? Classes just ended. I was gonna go home and take a nap." He whined.

Ruby scoffed, "Naps can wait. You have to see this!" She replied excitedly, half-walking, half-running back towards where the academy's workshop was. Richter sighed, rubbing the back of his head. Ruby knew her friend would protest and complain, but ultimately he would comply, most of the time.

"Fine fine." He finally said, following the excited Ruby at a much more sedate pace.

The Signal Academy workshop was a busy place during school hours. It was here that aspiring huntsman and huntresses began to craft their weapons. The tools they would use to battle grimm. Almost every weapon was unique and it was up to the person on what kind they would make. Ruby had spent a lot of time here, working hard to make a weapon she could call her own. There had been many failures and it had been soulcrushing, but Richter and her friends had always been there to help her. Making sure she didn't give up.

And now her persistence had finally paid off.

Ruby opened a nearby locker and pulled out her finished weapon. Richter's bored expression quickly lit up as he caught sight of it.

The petite girl turned towards her friend with a huge grin. "Check it out!" She exclaimed excitedly as her weapon unfolded into a scythe.

Richter whistled in admiration, "Wow you finished it?"

Ruby beamed, "Yup!"

She began to take her weapon through its paces. Slashing and twirling through the air, almost as if dancing. It felt perfect in her hands, like it was an extension of herself. Ruby grinned as she continued practicing, she had finally done it! She had finally completed her weapon!

So excited was Ruby that she was too enthusiastic with one swing, slicing a little too close to Richter's head. Thankfully Richter was also a huntsman in training and his reflexes saved him from a bloody shave. The scythe just passed over the top of his hair, cutting a few ebony strands from it. Ruby immediately stopped her practicing, putting the scythe behind her back and rocking back and forth on her feet. A sheepish smile on her face.

"Whoops! Heh, sorry." She apologized.

Richter had a handful of hair in his left hand, he was looking at it with a frown, which quickly turned into a grin. "Well, guess I don't need a haircut anymore."

Ruby smiled, "Always seeing the bright side of things eh?"

"Usually." Richter replied, shaking the strands of his hair off his hand. "So what are you going to call it?"

"Crescent Rose!" She informed him, holding it proudly in her right hand.

Richter nodded, "A suitable name."

Ruby raised an eyebrow. "That's all you have to say? I've been working on this for almost a year!"

"What else do you want me to add?" He asked, exasperated. "Sweet mother of god! That's the greatest scythe I've ever seen! It should be inducted into the weapon hall of fame! Why even my grandpa says it's cool-looking and he's blind!"

Ruby paused for a moment before grinning widely. "That's more like it."

Richter chuckled in response. "But seriously Ruby, nice work."

Crescent Rose folded back into its non-weapon shape and Ruby placed it behind her lower back. "Thanks. I was actually thinking of testing it out at the old manor east of here."

Richter crossed his arms in front of his chest, "You mean the one us students are forbidden to go to. The one that has had a lot of grimm sightings lately?" He shook his head, "I don't know, maybe you should use some of the dummies here first."

Ruby frowned, Richter was a good friend, but sometimes he was just too cautious for his own good. He wasn't a coward, she had seen him in action before with his weapon, Dyrnwyn, a single-edged sword that could transform into a revolver. He was an adept huntsman, but she had never seen him take a risk.

"Dummies don't fight back." She responded, "I can't gauge Crescent Rose properly that way." Ruby smirked at her friend. "Don't tell me you're getting cold feet Richter."

Richter let out a long sigh. "No, no." He said to her. "But if you insist on going, then I'm inviting Pearce and Trista to come along." He pulled out his scroll and began texting.

Ruby pouted, "Aw, but that means there will be less grimm for me!"

"You poor baby."

"But can't we just…"

Richter wagged the finger of his free hand at her. "No buts, this is the only way I'll agree to going."

Ruby huffed in indignation. "You're such a worrywart."

"Better that than having something happen to you out there because we were too reckless. I don't want to get punched by Yang again."

"Fair point."

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV  
**

The old manor east of Signal Academy had been there for over a century. It once belonged to a member of the Schnee family as sort of a getaway place for vacations. However, as the years passed grimm activity in the area grew too high and the manor was abandoned.

Now in the dilapidated manor's courtyard, four young huntsman in training were battling grimm. They were picking the creatures of darkness apart with ease. Ruby Rose was now out of her school uniform and in her favorite black and red dress with a battle skirt. The instigator of the impromptu mission was beheading grimm left and right with her scythe, twirling and flipping as she danced a dance of death for her enemies.

Her three friends, Richter Bremen, Pearce Spicule, and Trista Cornucopia were also doing their fair share of grimm-slaying. Richter, now out of his school uniform, was wearing a black jacket with grey lining, the tail-end of the jacket went to his ankles and was split in two. The twin tails of the jacket flowed in the wind as Richter went from grimm to grimm, either slashing them up with the sword version of his weapon or blasting them apart with the revolver version. Plain blue jeans and black shoes with grey trim completed the outfit.

Pearce Spicule was a faunus, he was tall and his hair was light-brown in color. He had the ears of a lion and a solid build. Currently, he was wearing a light-yellow, sleeveless shirt, blue sweatpants and blue jogging shoes. He looked like a hermit that had been training in the forest all his life. But his friends knew he preferred this style of clothing because it was easy to move around in. And move Pearce could. Armed with dual daggers that could transform into dual pistols, he made short work of any grimm foolish enough to stand in his way.

The last of Ruby's friends, Trista Cornucopia, was a dark-haired girl of average height. She had her long hair in a ponytail that went down to the base of her spine. Trista wore a white jumpsuit with red trim and her weapons were silver gauntlets that had mini-gatling guns embedded in the palms. grimm were shredded to pieces from the rapid fire of her gauntlets.

Richter beheaded several Beowulves with his sword in the blink of an eye, flicking the blood off his blade and sheathing Dyrnwyn. He looked around, assessing the battle. So far they had been lucky, the grimm here were all low-ranking, easy for huntsman of their caliber to dispatch. However, if the bigger grimm like the Ursa's and the Deathstalkers showed up, it would be a problem. They were still in training after all.

He watched as Ruby leapt into the air, making herself parallel to the ground as she spun like a top. She lashed out three quick times with her scythe, each splitting a grimm in half, before landing easily on her feet.

"All clear?" The petite girl asked.

"Yup." Richter replied.

"Yup." Came Pearce's answer.

"Gimme a second." Trista called out, several more rounds of her gauntlets went off before quiet settled over the courtyard. "Yup."

Richter watched Ruby survey the landscape with a frown before turning to him. "I told you there wouldn't be enough grimm!"

Richter waved it off, "Relax, you got a decent run out of Crescent Rose right?"

Ruby patted her weapon, now tucked behind her back once more. "Yeah she handles like a dream." A crazy expression suddenly appeared on her face and both Pearce and Trista took a step backwards. "But she wants more grimm blood!" She finished, laughing maniacally. Richter couldn't help but laugh. Leave it to Ruby to be so dramatic.

Pearce raised a skeptical eyebrow, "And now her weapon talks to her apparently."

Trista shrugged, "That's our crazy Ruby."

Richter walked up to Ruby and gave her a playful punch on her shoulder.

"Ow!" Ruby protested, rubbing her arm.

"There'll be plenty of grimm-slaying nights in the future Rambo, don't worry." The dark-haired boy reassured her, "Let's head home."

Richter took two steps when Pearce suddenly held a hand up, "Wait." The male faunus said, everyone paused. "Do you guys hear that?"

Richter strained his ears and at first the only sound he heard was silence, but then he heard it, a commotion, and it was coming from inside the manor.

Ruby's eyes immediately lit up "More grimm!" She said in an excited whisper, running for the manor's front doors.

"Ruby wait!" Richter hissed, rushing to try and catch up to her. "More grimm is not necessarily a good thing! We should leave it be!" He heard the muted footsteps of Pearce and Trista, coming up behind him.

"If things get bad, we run. Simple." Ruby whispered.

Richter was not convinced, "Yeah…simple…." He said sarcastically.

"A quick peek won't kill us." Pearce said.

"Yeah I was promised a good night, I didn't even break a sweat killing those poor excuses for grimm." Trista agreed.

Richter looked at each member of the group. He didn't like this plan, there were too many unknowns. The place wasn't abandoned for nothing. They were all good huntsman, but who knew what kind of creature the darkness would spit out in there? Still, all his friends wanted to check it out, so he couldn't say no.

"Fine, let's just…make this quick." He relented

Ruby smirked, "That's the spirit!"

The group entered the rundown mansion, the smell of mold assaulting their noses. Vines and other various vegetation were growing on the walls and a once bright and dazzling chandelier was now dull and hanging barely from the ceiling. Almost all the rooms were completely bare as looters picked the place clean decades ago.

"This place has seen better days." Pearce remarked.

"Yeah, it's kind of sad seeing something that used to belong to the Schnee family reduced to this." Trista said.

Ruby brought a finger to her lips and shushed them, "Quiet! We have to get the jump on them." Their two friends immediately stopped talking. Richter realized then, that they were just as nervous as he was.

The group continued to search the mansion, checking all the rooms on the ground floor and the second floor. Finding nothing except a lot of cobwebs and a few rats. They returned to the ground floor and entered the living room. Where they all finally eased the tension they were feeling and relaxed.

Ruby was pouting "I can't believe we didn't find any more grimm." She said sadly.

Pearce was crouching, checking his scroll for messages. "Ah well, at least we can say we explored a creepy mansion."

Richter caught Ruby's eye. "Another day Ruby, I promise."

The petite girl lowered her head sadly, "Yeah…"

"Hey guys!" Trista called out, Richter looked at the dark-haired girl to see her kneeling next to the living room's old fireplace. She turned to look at the group, "Maybe we can get a fire going! Anybody bring any marshmellows or…."

Richter stopped paying attention as he saw two red slits suddenly flare to life in the fireplace. The unmistakable eyes of a grimm.

"Trista!" Richter shouted, "LOOK OUT!"

"Huh?" Trista said, blood splattering her face as she looked down at the new hole in her abdomen. The beowulf that was hiding in the fireplace retracted the hand it had used to impale the dark-haired girl and Trista collapsed face-first to the floor in a heap, blood beginning to pool around her.

"Trista!" Pearce shouted. Richter was already moving, Dyrnwyn in revolver-form as he fired it behind him. Using the recoil from the shot, Richter arrived right in front of the beowulf that had wounded Trista. He brought his left palm right up to the Grimm's face and released a blast of his aura, knocking the creature backwards, its body no longer having a head.

Suddenly the fireplace and the entire wall it was attached to collapsed, shooting out a plume of dust. Richter was forced to use his left forearm to shield his eyes, he was dimly aware of Pearce grabbing Trista and moving her away from where the fireplace used to be. He heard the sound of Ruby bringing Crescent Rose into scythe form as they waited anxiously for whatever had broken the wall.

Eventually the dust cleared and Richter was greeted by the sight of grimm, and they weren't small fry either. Multiple beowulf alphas and he even spotted some ursas in the group. He clenched his teeth tightly, this was not good, he didn't know if they could take them all, especially since they were one down now.

"We've….got company…." He said out loud.

"I see that." Ruby replied, there was no longer a smile on her face. "Pearce, stay with Trista. Richter, let's go."

Pearce shouted his acknowledgement as Richter opened fire with Dyrnwyn in Revolver-form. Shots that would have destroyed a lesser grimm merely staggered a beowulf alpha that was charging for him. A second beowulf alpha ran by the one he was shooting at, crossing its arms in front of its face.

Instinct saved Richter as he switched Dyrnwyn to sword-form, barely parrying the second beowulf alpha as it blurred towards him, its sharp claws extended. He caught the claws with the flat of his blade, the force of the blow knocked him off his feet and he was forced to do a backflip to regain his footing. As soon as his feet touched solid ground again he took off, delivering two swift diagonal slashes to the beowulf alpha, each one opening wounds on the creature from collarbone to hip. Black blood sprayed from the cuts as the grimm staggered back. Richter placed his right boot into the beowulf's belly, sending it flying backwards, a tenth of a second after his boot landed he lashed out horizontally with his sword, slicing the beowulf's head off cleanly from its shoulders. The body landed on a group of its brethren.

There was no time to celebrate as the first beowulf alpha, the one he had been shooting before, lunged forward. The grimm slashed at Richter with its right hand, landing a solid hit on his left cheek. The blow was so strong it knocked him onto his right side. Reacting quickly, Richter rolled away from the beowulf, hearing its claws strike where he just was. He rolled to his feet, turning to face the grimm, which was already in melee range. It lashed out with a downwards slash, using its left hand. Richter answered with an upward slash from Dyrnwyn, severing the beowulf's left arm at the elbow. He followed through with a downward slash that cleaved the grimm's skull in two, it collapsed in front of him, dissolving into a black dust.

Richter barely took a deep breath before four more beowulf alphas were closing the distance to him. He would have tried to change his current position, but he was the only thing standing between them and Pearce, who was doing his best to attend to Trista's critical wound. Instead, the boy switched Dyrnwyn to revolver-form and began firing shot after shot at the beowulf pack. It wasn't enough to kill them, but it did keep them at bay, at least until he ran out of Dust.

He took this time to spare a glance at Ruby to see how she was faring. Currently she was on the back of an ursa. Crescent Rose in rifle form as she fired point-blank at the back of the grimm's skull. Using the recoil from the shot, the petite girl backflipped behind two beowulf alphas who were coming to attack her. She landed, switched her weapon to scythe-form and with one horizontal slash, cut off the beowulves' legs. They fell face-first to the ground. Ruby was already moving, spinning and executing another horizontal slash that beheaded a beowulf alpha behind her. She continued her rotation, crouching and lashing out with another slash that ripped another beowulf alpha in half. Richter couldn't help, but envy her, she was a natural.

He returned Dyrnwyn to sword form and charged the pack of beowulf. Pearce did what he could, supporting him with his pistols. However, the grimm were just too durable and too numerous. Even Ruby was forced to leap out of the melee, using Crescent Rose in rifle form to hold the grimm she was battling at bay. She regrouped with the rest of the group, positioning herself at Richter's side with Pearce just behind them. Trista's eyes were shut and her teeth were clenched as she constantly groaned in pain.

"They just keep coming!" Pearce exclaimed, continuing to fire into the mass of grimm.

Richter turned to Ruby, "Time to go!"

For once she didn't argue, "Right!"

Pearce picked up Trista bridal-style and took off towards the manor's front door. Richter and Ruby followed, still pumping shots into the mass of grimm as they walked backwards at a brisk pace. If they could just make it out the front door…

"Shit! We're cut off!" Richter heard Pearce say, followed by the rapid reports of his pistol. Richter looked behind him to see a wall of grimm blocking them from their exit. But how? Between Ruby and him, no grimm got past. He then noticed the large holes in the manor's floor. Holes that were not there before. Did the grimm tunnel up from underground?

"Oh no!" Ruby exclaimed from his right, Richter looked towards her to see her struggling with Crescent Rose in rifle-form. "It's jammed!"

"Switch it to scythe-form!" Richter yelled to her.

"I can't! The locking mechanism is completely shot!" She shouted back. Ruby was so intent on trying to fix her weapon that she failed to notice the beowulf alpha that leapt towards her. With no hesitation, Richter leapt towards his petite friend, intercepting the beowulf in mid-air before it could reach her. He drove Dyrnwyn into the right side of the grimm's head, then kickflipped off the body before it hit the floor. He landed at Ruby's left side.

"Can you fix it?" He asked her.

Ruby quickly shook her head, "Not here."

Richter was about to say something else when the sounds of pistols clicking empty reached his ears.

Pearce cursed, "I'm out of Dust!" He said, sounding on the verge of panic.

Time seemed to slow down as Richter assessed the situation. One friend severely wounded, another with a broken weapon and one that was out of Dust. They were surrounded by grimm and since they were here in secret, no help would be coming. Even if they did use their scrolls to call for help, it wouldn't reach them in time. He felt himself shaking, it was fear. He didn't want to die here. Richter took a look at each of his friends, his gaze lastly falling on Ruby, who was looking at him questioningly with her silver eyes. He stared into those silver orbs and suddenly the shaking stopped, he knew what must be done.

Taking a step forward, Richter tightened his grip on Dyrnwyn, "Go, I'll hold them off." He could still feel the cold knot of dread in his stomach, he was still afraid to die.

But he was more afraid of seeing his friends get killed by the grimm.

Ruby looked at him with disbelief. "What? Richter no! You can't!"

"I still have some Dust left." Richter said, surprised at how calm he sounded, "I can cover your escape."

"You can't beat all those grimm on your own!" He heard Pearce say.

Richter turned Dyrnwyn into revolver-form, firing a few shots into the grimm horde. "You're wasting time!"

"Don't you get it Richter?" Ruby asked, her voice pleading, "If you stay, you'll die!"

Richter felt his composure break, "No you don't get it Ruby!" He snapped at her, "If I don't stay, we all die!"

She had no reply to that. He could see the strategist in her as she played through the scenarios in her head. Richter watched her face contort in sadness and pain as she came up with the same conclusion he did. If they all tried to run, the grimm would chase them down and kill them all, but if one stayed behind to fight them, to delay them, then the others might survive. He looked away, seeing that crestfallen look on her face was quickly eating away at his resolve and he needed to be strong, the strongest he's ever been, to do this.

Instead Richter pointed his revolver at the pack of grimm blocking the front door. Channeling his aura into the weapon, he fired a massive sphere-shaped blast that was taller than he was. It cut through the grimm, slamming into the front double doors and shattering them into splinters.

Both Ruby and Pearce looked at him, eyes filled with concern and regret. Richter turned his back to them, facing the grimm horde. "Go on, that path won't stay clear forever." He heard Pearce pick up Trista and head through the hole he had made. He was surprised to feel a hand squeeze his right forearm. He looked to see Ruby staring at him.

"Richter…" She said, guilt in her tone. He knew what she was thinking, that her stubbornness had got them into this mess. However, he was just as guilty as she was, going along with her, because she was his friend. He didn't want that guilt to eat her up.

"It's alright." He said gently, making direct eye contact. "At least…it'll be kind of noble you know?" He grabbed her right shoulder with his right hand and gently shoved her behind him. "You're going to be a great huntress one day Ruby. So live, live and show the world what you are made of."

For a moment Ruby didn't move, Richter thought he saw the hint of tears in her eyes, but he hadn't seen her cry since they were kids. He was about to yell at her, when he finally heard the sounds of footsteps running for the hole. Good girl, now it was just him and like a hundred grimm, with barely any Dust left in his weapon. No pressure.

No pressure at all.

He continued firing into the horde, and although he was pulling the trigger on Dyrnwyn as fast as he could, the horde was still advancing on him. One of the beowulf alphas broke through his barrage, reaching for him with its left hand. Richter switched Dyrnwyn to sword-form and pinned the grimm's left hand to the ground with it. Using his free hand, he blasted a hole through its chest with a burst of aura, the grimm went limp.

Richter dislodged his sword, and felt something like a freight train hit his chest as an ursa headbutted him, knocking him onto his shoulders where he slid backwards for a few meters. Ignoring the pain, he rolled back to his feet, switched Dyrnwyn to revolver-form and fired a handful of shots into the ursa's head. It staggered toward him a few more steps before the bullets took their toll and the grimm collapsed at his feet. Another ursa took its place a second later. Richter let out a curse and took aim, pulling the trigger.

And Dyrnwyn clicked empty.

Richter knew it was going to happen soon, but he didn't think it would be at such an inopportune moment. It was his last thought before he was hit hard on the right side of the head by the ursa's massive left forepaw. The blow broke through his aura shield, cutting into his face. Richter could feel his own blood flowing down his face as he crashed onto his left side. That had hurt.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

It was her fault, it was all her fault. That's what Ruby kept thinking. If she hadn't been so damn persistent, if she just would have left when Richter insisted, then none of this would have happened.

Tears trailed behind her as they fled from her eyes, but she refused to cry, it wasn't the time. Richter was one of her oldest friends. Because of their short stature they got picked on a lot when they were kids, but neither of them took it lying down. They gave back to the bullies as much as they got and they always had each other's backs. Eventually they got a reputation, don't mess with Ruby Rose or Richter Bremen, sure you were bigger and stronger than them, but you wouldn't leave unscathed. Yang and Richter had always watched out for her, but now here she was leaving a friend she had known since a toddler to be killed by grimm. Abandoning him, the fact that he seemed to be okay with it made Ruby feel worse.

She saw Pearce turn his head back to look towards the manor, the sounds of gunfire had stopped. Trista groaned in his arms, blood dripping down her jumpsuit. Ruby frowned at her, they needed to get her to a hospital soon. Pearce however, looked like he wanted to turn back to try and help Richter.

"Just keep moving Pearce!" She called to him, wincing as she spoke those words, "Don't look back!"

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Richter grunted in pain as he opened his eyes, greeted by the sight of the ursa who just wrecked him standing tall over his body. It then opened its mouth wide and dove towards him, seeking to take a chunk out of his right flank. Exerting himself, Richter pushed off of the ground, ending up in mid-air, right above the ursa's head. Transforming Dyrnwyn back to sword-form, Richter reversed his grip on it and dropped down on top of the large grimm, driving the blade right through its head. He extracted the blade from the ursa's skull and swiftly twirled it in front of him as web of steel, blocking over a dozen strikes to his person. He then gripped Dyrnwyn tightly in his right hand and charged into the horde.

He lashed out viciously and accurately, seeking killing blows whenever he could. If there was no opening for a killing blow, Richter would aim to take out limbs instead. If he was unable to kill them, then at least he could slow them down so they would have trouble chasing his friends. He lost track of the number of grimm he had cut down, but it was not without expense. With his aura shield depleted, the grimm were landing fierce hits on him. Already Richter's arms, legs and torso had several deep cuts on them. The young huntsman was leaving a trail of his own blood wherever he moved, but he didn't care, he had to keep fighting.

Richter had just finished cleaving a beowulf in half with a vertical upward slash when another finally broke through his defenses. The grimm bit down hard on Richter's left shoulder and he screamed in agony, blood exploding from the wound. Clenching his teeth, the young man fought through the pain, shoving Dyrnwyn into the underside of the beowulf's jaw. He saw the blade of his weapon protrude through the top of the grimm's head and it spasmed once before going limp, dissolving away.

As soon as Richter was free from the grip of the beowulf's teeth, he stumbled backwards, trying to get a little distance from the rest of the grimm horde. He was starting to feel dizzy, and judged that it was probably from the blood loss. Richter fell to his knees, using Dyrnwyn to keep himself propped up. He felt so tired, so weak. The horde began moving towards him again, did he even still have the strength to fight them?

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby's jaw tightened as the sounds of battle coming from the manor seemed to have ceased. She saw Pearce look back as well.

"It got quiet back there." He said solemnly, "Do you think…."

"No." She replied quickly, "Richter won't go down that easily."

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Richter's limbs felt like they were weighed down by anchors. He wanted nothing more than to keel over, close his eyes and let oblivion take him. How much time had passed since he began this suicide run? Surely Ruby and the rest were far enough away now that the horde couldn't catch up to them?

Surely it was alright for him to drop over dead now.

He kept telling himself that as a beowulf alpha dropped to all fours, leaping at him. Surely there was no need for him to keep fighting, he could just let it end here right?

Richter felt an invisible surge of strength suddenly flow through him and his grip tightened on Dyrnwyn's handle. The beowulf lunged forward with its claws, but instead of impaling his chest, it hit only air.

No.

Having sidestepped to his right at the last possible moment, Richter brought Dyrnwyn down on the beowulf's neck with all his might, separating its head from its shoulders.

He still had to fight, he couldn't leave things to chance, not when his friends' lives were at stake. He had to keep fighting, until he couldn't fight anymore. Twisting in a complete circle to build momentum, Richter lashed out in a horizontal swing. Dyrnwyn's blade flew right into the jaws of an ursa, then through it. The young huntsman heard something snap and looked at his weapon to see half the blade had broken off, the top half clattering to the floor and sliding a ways away from him. Fortunately, the ursa he had cut with it collapsed to the floor and began to dissolve.

However, another ursa took its place, this one raised its forepaws above its head then slammed them to the ground hard. A shockwave slid across the floor, carving it up as it slammed into Richter, sending him flying backwards in the air. He bounced twice off the floor before hitting it face-first and staying.

Richter tried to struggle to his feet, what was left of Dyrnwyn gripped tightly in his right hand, but he could only manage to get to his knees. The grimm horde was closing in on him and he had nothing left, this was really it. Despite it all, Richter grinned to himself.

May as well use his semblance.

Although he was able to craft his weapon way before Ruby, she had mastered her semblance faster than him. In fact, he was still learning to control it properly, which is why he didn't use it in battle yet. However, this was a special circumstance, there was no need to worry about control here.

Searching deep within him, Richter found the power of his semblance and dragged it out. His entire body instantly felt hot and he looked down at his arms to see orange, vein-like lines running down them. Ruby, who was one of two people who had seen him use his semblance, the other being her uncle, said that his eyes became darker than night. He only had her word to go on for that though. A shroud of flame erupted around Dyrnwyn as he raised it high. As soon as he brought his broken blade down that would be it. In his current state, the strain of using his semblance would most likely rip him apart. Despite that thought, he chuckled, might as well go out with a bang right? He braced himself.

Time seemed to slow down as Richter started bringing his sword down. Images flashed through his mind, images of his dead parents, of Pearce, Yang and Trista and finally, Ruby. He closed his eyes, regretting that he would never see any of them again.

Goodbye.

That was Richter's last thought as Dyrnwyn made contact with the floor and the entire area was engulfed with flame.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby was nearly floored by a shockwave as an explosion rocked the manor behind her. She turned back towards it, seeing the flames beginning to spread to the manor's roof. The petite girl clenched her teeth so hard she was surprised she actually didn't crack them. Richter, that idiot, he actually went and used his semblance. That stupid brave idiot.

"Whoa." Pearce uttered, who was also staring at the explosion. "I didn't think Richter was that strong."

Ruby felt a pain stab at her chest, but it wasn't the physical kind, she turned her back on the manor. "We need to keep moving." She said in an eerily calm tone.

Pearce looked at her, concern and sympathy in his eyes, "Ruby…"

"Those grimm will be after us soon…"

Pearce set Trista down for a moment as he wiped the sweat off of his brow. "I need a moment."

Ruby's head lowered, her tiny hands curled into fists, "If they catch up to us, Richter's sacrifice will have been for nothing." She cast a steely gaze at Pearce and the male faunus found himself leaning away from her. "Let's go."

Pearce nodded silently, picking Trista back up as they continued running. Although Ruby's face was set in determination, although she had steeled her heart. The petite girl couldn't stop the few stray tears that flew from her silver eyes, nor the sudden loss she felt in her heart. Someone important to her was lost yet again. And all she could do to honor him was to run.


	2. Shattered Worlds 2

**A/N: Thanks to the people who have reviewed/favorited/followed. It has been a long time since I've wrote a fanfiction.**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Three weeks after the manor incident._

The trail up to Patch Cemetary was a narrow one, barely wide enough for two people. Tombstones littered the grass on either side of the dirt road. The morning sky was clear blue and birds chirped as they flew overhead.

Ruby wasn't paying attention to any of it. Instead focusing on her destination, a particular tombstone at the rear end of the cemetary. The tombstone of her late friend, Richter Bremen.

She arrived at Richter's tombstone, his name engraved on it as well as the words "Treasured Friend." Underneath it. The petite girl sighed, rubbing her arm awkwardly. Starting conversations was always tough for her.

"Hey Richter." Ruby said quietly to the tombstone, "Sorry I haven't visited in a while, been really busy." She paused for a moment, trying to think of what to say, "Pearce and Trista told me they've been visiting you a lot. That's good, you had trouble making friends, just like me." She shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "I fixed Crescent Rose, she had a faulty locking mechanism." Her head lowered in sadness. "In my excitement, I kind of didn't inspect it like I should have…" She suddenly perked up, "But not any more though! I'm going to be inspecting my weapons like a hawk from now on!"

More silence ensued, Ruby rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet. She wanted to say more. The entire walk here she was running through her mind all the things she wanted to say to her late friend. However, now that she was here, it was like grasping at straws.

"I remember what you said, about me becoming a great huntress." Ruby started up again, "I feel a little awkward you now? All my friends and family expecting great things from me, but I'll do my best not to let you down." She felt her lips curl upward in a smile, "I'm going to try to get into Beacon, it's where Yang's going. If I work hard enough maybe they'll let me in too!"

The alarm on Ruby's scroll went off as she grabbed the device out of her pocket. "Well, that's all the time I got for now." She informed the tombstone, "Bye Richter! I'll visit again soon!" With that, she took off back the way she had come.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Richter's world was nothing, but darkness. There was nothing to see, nothing to hear, nothing to touch. There was just nothing. He wondered if this was what the afterlife was. All of your senses stripped from you.

Suddenly, a wave of pain washed over Richter's entire body with such intensity that he had to clench his teeth to keep from crying out. Next, the darkness receded from his vision and he began to see colors other than black. Lastly, the sound of machinery beeping filled his ears. One by one his senses returned to him, but why? Surely that didn't mean he was alive?

He took a look around the large room he was in, with numerous glowing light-blue lights on some high-tech machinery. Richter tried to get up, but found he was strapped to a metal table by his wrists and ankles. All he could was move his head. He also noticed with some alarm that there were various tubes attached to the back of his skull and his bare chest. He didn't want to think about what they were for. Was he in some kind of research facility?

How the hell was he still alive? He remembered his body literally ripping apart as he activated his semblance to take as many grimm with him as he could. He should be dead, but this didn't look like a place the dead would reside in. Did that mean someone saved him? If so, why wasn't he in a hospital? Where were his friends?

"Well this is a surprise." A sultry voice suddenly said. Richter raised his head as he spotted a woman walking towards him from a dark corner of the room.

The woman was beautiful. She was tall with long ashen-black hair. She wore a red dress with some sort of weapon resting at the base of her spine. The most notable feature for Richter though, were her eyes, they were amber. Maybe it was because he was still getting his wits about him, but it almost looked like her eyes were glowing. It was probably just a trick with the lights though.

"I didn't expect you would ever wake up again." The woman said.

Richter groaned in pain, "Yeah…me neither. What is this place?"

"An old lab of mine. Built under the manor." She answered, Richter heard her heels as she paced back and forth. "To tell you the truth, I had almost forgotten about this place. Until you and your friends disturbed the grimm I kept here."

Richter gulped, forcing himself to stay calm, "You…kept grimm here?"

She gave him a small smile, "That's right, it was a little troublesome, but they made good research material."

"Research for what?" Richter asked, sweating. The woman walked to him on the left side of the table. She stroked his chin delicately with her left hand before seizing it in a deceptively iron grip.

"Silly boy." She purred, "I'm asking the questions here." Her amber eyes narrowed, "How did you find this lab?"

"We were just testing our weapons." Richter answered truthfully, "We didn't even know this place existed!"

She smiled at him, a smile devoid of any warmth. "Really?" The woman released her grip on his chin and began walking away. "Well, alright then."

Richter pulled futilely against his restraints, "Uh, are you going to let me go?"

She turned back to look at him, her gaze predatory, "Why would I let you go when we can have so much fun?"

"I'm kind of not into the bondage thing…" He joked, trying to keep himself from panicking.

"Cute." She remarked, raising her arms from her sides and gesturing to the entire room. "I have all this equipment here, but I can't test it unless I have a guinea pig."

Richter did not like the sound of that. "Who's the guinea pig, is it me? Because I really don't want it to be me right now."

The woman gave a sinister chuckle. "It'll be interesting to see if you break." She turned and walked away, her form melting into the shadows.

Richter tugged at his restraints harder, getting desperate. "Wait! Wait! Is there a safe word I'm missing? Is it peaches? Maybe yogurt? Come on lady! Work with me here!" His pleas fell on deaf ears.

The sound of extra machinery whirring to life caught Richter's attention. He looked around frantically, trying to locate the source of the noise. It was then that he noticed the clear tubes attached to his body were being filled with a black liquid and it was slowly flowing towards him. Richter redoubled his efforts on the restraints, but it was no good. In addition to still being weak from his battle with the grimm, the leather restraints were solid. Unless he had help, he wasn't going anywhere.

He took rapid deep breaths as he saw the black liquid get closer and closer, until finally, it reached his body. Richter grit his teeth as he felt a burning sensation in his head and his chest as the black liquid began to flow into his body. The pain was excruciating and seemed to be building with every second. Eventually, it grew too much for the young huntsman and he opened his mouth in a scream of agony. A scream that got louder as more of the liquid was injected into him.

Richter's last rational thought before his mind was consumed by the fiery pain was that this was way worse than fighting the neverending tide of grimm.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Over a year later…._

Ruby Rose watched the derailed train as Schnee company workers frantically moved to and fro, attempting to get the train repaired as soon as possible. Apparently, there was a malfunction in the wheels somewhere which caused the derailment. Ruby's team had taken on the mission to safeguard them as they worked, on the insistence of Weiss of course. At the moment, the train was stopped in the middle of a forested area and the workers were nervous that the forest held grimm.

Ruby sighed in boredom, this was a far cry from a few weeks ago when they had to suppress a grimm invasion at Vale. That had been crazy! Since then however, the White Fang had all but dropped off the radar, and grimm activity had dropped too surprisingly. Perhaps they had killed a significant number in Vale. Whatever the case, there was not much to do at the moment.

"See anything strange?" Ruby's sister, Yang asked, her long blonde hair swaying in the wind.

"No." Ruby replied sounding disappointed.

Yang cast her eyes down at the train. "So what's so special about this train anyway? The White Fang has been quiet for weeks now. Huntresses shouldn't be needed for a mission like this."

Ruby shrugged, "Weiss said there is something special on the train."

Yang smiled mischievously, "Special huh? What is it?"

Ruby frowned, "She said it was classified."

The tall blonde huntress rolled her eyes, "Of course it is."

Ruby tapped her earpiece, turning it on so she could speak to the other two members of her team. "Weiss, Blake, you two have anything?" She listened to their responses and sighed. "Okay." She replied, tapping the earpiece again and looking at Yang. "They don't have anything either."

Yang put her hands on her hips, "Weiss is probably just being paranoid. I mean she'd be in big trouble with her dad if that 'Special' thing got stolen right?"

"Probably."

Ruby continued to watch the workers, her mind beginning to wander. She thought about Team JNPR, who were still in Vale. They were probably having way more fun than them right now. She thought about her friends back at Signal, Pearce, Trista and a few others. It had been a while since she updated them about her adventures at Beacon. She would have to do that once she completed this mission. Which seemed to be taking forever.

The petite girl began furiously rubbing her hands over her head. "Ugh! This is so boring! I wish we could…" She stopped suddenly, her huntress instincts kicking in. Yang noticed her change in demeanor.

"Ruby?" Her older sister said.

"Something's coming!" Ruby informed Yang, a lot of somethings actually, judging by the footsteps she was hearing. Footsteps that weren't human. They grew steadily louder until something large burst through the treeline behind them.

Ruby instantly leapt to her right, Yang leaping in the opposite direction. Looking back to where she was previously, the red-clad huntress spotted a boarbatusk charging ahead, running straight for the train. She landed on a tree branch and watched as numerous other boarbatusks burst through the same treeline, headed in the same direction.

"We have to cut them off!" Ruby shouted to Yang, who was in a treetop across from her. The blonde huntress nodded and leapt away, using the added boost from firing her gauntlets behind her. Ruby leapt to follow when something caught her eye. Something was headed towards her from her right, something fast.

She brought up Crescent Rose just in time. Parrying an attack that was strong enough to send her sailing backwards. Ruby hooked her scythe into a tree branch, spinning around it a few times before switching her weapon to gun-form, landing easily on her feet. The petite girl kept her eyes open, looking for the thing that knocked her out of the air, but the only sounds she could hear were the sounds of her team fighting the boarbatusks in the distance.

Suddenly a shadowy form blurred towards her from her right. Ruby pointed Crescent Rose straight down and fired, boosting herself in the air and avoiding the shadowy form as it passed under her. She saw the glint of metal and a moment later the tree she had used to kill her momentum began toppling over, the trunk had been sliced clean in half.

It was in that moment that Ruby got a good look at her attacker, judging from the person's build, they were male. Their face was covered in a cloth, making them sort of look like a mummy. Their hands were also covered with cloth, all the way up their forearms. The masked man wore a black shirt, pants and boots, a grey cloak draped over his shoulders. In his right hand was a single-edged sword and it looked familiar…

Ruby put the information aside in her brain, she needed to focus on the fight first. Still in mid-air, she fired two consecutive shots. The masked man deflected them both with his sword. Ruby fired at her opponent a third time, using the recoil to backflip and plant her feet on a nearby tree trunk. She then fired at the tree trunk, boosting herself towards the masked man, her weapon switching back to scythe form. Ruby reared back, preparing to swing her scythe as her opponent dashed forward, matching her speed, his grip tightening on his sword.

They clashed hard, the shockwave partially uprooting some of the nearby trees. Ruby immediately went on the attack. Swinging her scythe numerous times in various looping swings. The masked man parried, dodged or deflected them all expertly. He even forced Ruby on the defensive for a good ten seconds, his strikes mostly aimed at her face and neck.

Ruby swung her scythe in a horizontal arc, aiming for the left side of her enemy's head. The masked man ducked under the swing and in the next moment brought his sword down on top of her weapon, pinning it to the ground. She felt her face flare up in pain as her opponent slammed his left elbow into her nose. Ruby staggered back from the hit, only to be knocked backwards further as the masked man planted his left boot into her abdomen.

The petite girl flew backwards, managing to right herself and land on her feet at the last second. She still slid backwards a meter or two due to momentum and when she finally stopped her opponent was already attacking her again. This time, the masked man was high in the air, in front and above her, his sword raised high above his head in a reverse-grip. He was trying to impale her through the top of her head, but that wasn't going to happen today.

Aiming right in front of her, Ruby fired Crescent Rose, the recoil moving her backwards and out of the masked man's path, making him bury his sword in the ground. Seeing an opening, the petite girl twirled her scythe and brought it down towards the back of his head in a downwards vertical slash. The masked man dislodged his sword and leapt backwards just in time, the tip of the scythe's blade was just inches from the back of his head before he jumped.

The two combatants stared each other down, when the masked man suddenly spoke. "You've improved quite a bit with this thing haven't you?"

Ruby blinked, eyeing him suspiciously, "Who are you?"

"Me? I'm no one." The masked man answered. "I'm just…" the sword in his hands suddenly shifted into a pistol as he took aim at her. "….A complete failure." She mentally scowled, a failure? Yeah right, not with skills like he had.

Ruby twirled her scythe in front of her as she deflected the masked man's shots. His voice, it was very familiar, but she couldn't quite pinpoint it. Maybe if she ripped that stupid mask off his face she could identify him.

The masked man suddenly surged towards her, moving so fast he blurred. His weapon had shifted back to sword form and he lashed out, the blade heading for her waist. Ruby managed to block the slash with the handle of her weapon and the sword bounced off. The masked man stopped just two steps behind her, his grey cloak billowing so close to her she could reach out and touch it.

She swiftly ducked, narrowly avoiding being beheaded by her opponent's weapon. The petite girl then switched Crescent Rose to gun form, aiming for the masked man's chest. A split-second before she could fire, her enemy deflected her weapon to the left with his sword and she shot a bullet harmlessly into the forest. She quickly lined up her shot and pulled the trigger again, but the masked man deftly deflected her gun to the right this time.

Ruby smirked and switched her weapon to scythe form, swinging it horizontally from right to left, the tip of the blade heading right for her opponent's left temple. However, the masked man leaned his head backwards at the last moment, dodging a fatal blow.

That had not been Ruby's intention though.

The tip of Crescent Rose caught onto the cloth masking the man's face and as Ruby completed her swing, she ripped the cloth clean off. She looked hard with her silver eyes at the man's now-exposed face and nearly dropped her weapon in shock when she recognized who it was.

Standing before her, with his slicked back medium-length dark hair and his eyes nearly as black as the night, was Richter Bremen. Her childhood friend. The one that had died over a year ago.

Ruby's eyes were as wide as saucers. "R-Richter!?"

Richter's expression was neutral, his lips twisted downwards in a slight frown. "Hello Ruby. It's been awhile." He greeted, his voice cold.

He charged forward, performing a downwards vertical slash aimed to slice her in half. Only Ruby's instincts and muscle memory saved her as she blocked the slash with her weapon's handle, her brain still processing that Richter was alive and that he was attacking her.

"Stop!" She pleaded, "What are you doing?"

Richter's face remained impassive. "Isn't it obvious? I'm trying to cut you in half."

"Why?"

"Because, you stand in the way of our goal."

"What goal? Richter! What's happened to you?"

Richter's eyes narrowed, "That's none of your concern."

Ruby clenched her teeth, "Of course it is! I'm your friend!" Richter's eyes widened slightly for a moment and Ruby used that opportunity to shove him a safe distance away from her.

For a moment, she thought she saw a spark of her old friend, but too soon his eyes returned to their cold expression. "My friend?" He repeated, lowering his head. "That word…" Ruby's eyes widened in surprise as she was suddenly looking at the tip of Richter's sword just inches from her left eye. "….No longer has any meaning to me."

He then thrust the blade forward.


	3. Shattered Worlds 3

**A/N: I have decided to stop using the horizontal lines to represent scene shifts as they were driving me nuts.**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV  
**

 _Eight Years ago._

 _Richter hungrily breathed in lungfuls of air as he fell onto his butt, his tiny chest rising and falling rapidly. He had a black eye and several other bruises. The left sleeve of his grey long-sleeve shirt were torn and the left kneecap of his pants was completely gone. In front of him were two other boys, lying prone and limp, low groans of pain escaping from their lips. They were two years older than him and a good head taller, they had tried to take his backpack from him, which was strewn about somewhere on the dirt clearing._

 _He felt someone lean against his back, it was the girl who had come to help him fight the older boys off. She looked to be about his age and was short like him. The girl had chin-length black hair that seemed to be tinted red. The most notable feature about her though, was her long red cloak. She was just as roughed up as he was and breathing just as heavily. It had been a hell of a fight, but working together, they had beaten the bullies up. It felt good, really good._

 _"Thanks for the help." Richter said once he caught his breath. "I might have been in trouble if you hadn't of showed up."_

 _"You're welcome." She replied after a few breaths. "I've been wanting to get back at those jerks for a while anyway." They stayed like that, back-to-back in a sitting position, for a few more moments. Richter looked up into the sky, the sun glaring back down at him, looking like a golden pearl._

 _The girl suddenly whined, "Aw, I'm going to be in trouble again. My dad doesn't like it when I get into fights."_

 _Richter spared a glance behind him. "My house is close by, you can clean up there before heading to your place." He suggested._

 _"Really? Thanks!"_

 _He felt the weight removed from his back as the girl stood up. She walked in front of him and Richter finally got a good look at her eyes. Silver? That was an unusual eye color, not in a bad way though._

 _The girl extended her right hand, smiling brightly. "My name's Ruby! What's yours?"_

 _Richter found her smile infectious as he mirrored it. "Richter." He replied, taking her hand._

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present day._

Richter watched as his sword sped towards Ruby's left eye. The tip of the blade was mere centimeters from her eyeball when she leaned back suddenly. The sword instead broke through her aura shield and scraped a horizontal line on her forehead, right above the left eye. He couldn't help, but be impressed.

"Nice dodge." He complemented in a neutral tone.

Ruby looked at him as a trail of blood ran down the left side of her head with a face of conflicting emotions. He knew he should be feeling something too as it had been so long since he last seen her, but there was nothing. The young man sighed, he really would never be the same. He'd been altered too much.

"Richter, I don't know what's going on, but I can help you." She pleaded.

His face remained impassive. "I don't need help." He stated clearly, "I need…." He stopped mid-sentence, hearing the telltale signs of gunshots. They were getting closer, Ruby's team was on their way. Time for him to go. "Well, you'll find out soon enough." The short ex-huntsman walked backwards, melting into the treeline.

Richter made extra care not to make any noise as he sped through the forest. If he moved stealthily enough, Ruby and her team wouldn't be able to track him. Then he could rendezvous with the rest of the team at the hideout.

He winced slightly as his body tensed for a moment. The hunger was back, it clawed from within him, demanding to be satisfied. Fortunately, it wasn't too bad at the moment, he could suppress it, for now. But soon, he would have to sate the hunger, and it wasn't something that ordinary food could do.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

"I'm fine! It's just a scratch!" Ruby said impatiently as her older sister inspected the cut on her forehead. She wanted to chase after Richter, but her team was adamant that they make sure she was unharmed.

Weiss strolled around the clearing they were in, taking in the sight of the bent trees, broken limbs and craters. "What in the world happened here?"

Blake was inspecting the edge of the clearing, holding up a broken tree branch. "Looks like you had quite a battle."

Ruby caught her sister's eye, "Yang, I saw Richter."

Yang stared at her for a long moment, raising one eyebrow, "You sure you didn't hit your head?"

She glared at her older sibling, "I'm not joking! He was the one who attacked me!"

Yang put a hand on her shoulder, "He died a year ago, there's no way it could be him." Ruby shook her head, there was no mistaking Richter's face. She had known it for years.

"It was! I swear it!" The red-cloaked girl replied adamantly.

"Who is Richter?" Weiss interrupted.

Yang looked at the heiress, "An old friend of ours, he was killed a year ago, fighting grimm off so Ruby and the rest of their friends could escape."

"But he's not dead anymore!" Ruby insisted, looking from Blake to Weiss, silently pleading for support.

Blake placed a hand on her chin as she delved into her thoughts, "It could have been a disguise." She suggested.

"Yeah!" Weiss quickly agreed, "Or maybe someone that looked like him. There are plenty of people that look like each other."

"No it wasn't a disguise or someone else." Ruby responded, "It was Richter! I'm not sure how or why, but he's alive!" The cloaked girl suddenly slumped her shoulders and cast her gaze to the ground, "And apparently wants to kill me now."

Yang rose from her crouching position, looking into the forest. "If that really was Richter, then where has he been all this time?"

Ruby didn't have an answer for her.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

The hunger was stronger now.

Richter stumbled in his stride, suddenly collapsing to his knees as he doubled over, holding his stomach with both arms. The short ex-huntsman mentally cursed, he thought he could stave it off for a little bit longer, but he had miscalculated. He needed to feed.

Still holding his stomach with his right arm, Richter braced himself against a tree with his left hand. The ex-huntsman's breathing came faster and faster as sweat beaded on his forehead. The sound of howling filled his ears as a pack of beowulves appeared from the treeline ahead of him. They snapped and snarled at Richter, steadily inching themselves closer to him. They could sense his weakened condition. He looked at the beowulf pack and grunted, it would have to do.

Richter pushed himself off of the tree, standing tall on his own two feet once more. He began walking towards the beowulves as he released the mental restraints he was putting on the hunger. Already the ex-huntsman could feel the corrupted veins surfacing on the skin of his face, could feel the blackness fill his eyes. The hunger was taking over, in a few more seconds it would be over.

The beowulves, sensing something amiss, actually stopped their advance, eyeing their would-be prey curiously. One was even starting to back up, but it was too late. Richter lunged forward.

The forest was soon filled with the death cries of the grimm.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby sat on the edge of her bed, dimly aware of her older sister describing to Blake the previous battle she had waged on their last mission. Apparently, boarbatusks weren't the only thing that attacked the SDC train. There was someone else there too and Yang had fought him briefly, before he had managed to escape with a briefcase of some sort. Ruby wondered if that had been Richter's partner.

"So this big guy was wielding this huge battle axe…." Yang continued, "…wielding it like it was a feather. He was going to blindside Weiss, so I knocked him away and said, 'Hey, I wanna AXE you a question!'"

Ruby winced at her sister's bad pun, she saw Blake face-palm out of the corner of her eye. The red-clad girl looked over at Weiss to see her talking non-stop into her scroll. The heiress had been talking on it for the better part of an hour, most likely explaining that whatever was so 'Special.' Was stolen.

"The grimm seemed very coordinated as well." Blake remarked. "It almost seemed like someone was controlling them."

"Weird." Ruby replied to her faunus teammate.

Yang looked over to where Weiss was pacing back and forth, still talking furiously into her scroll. "I haven't seen her this worried in a while."

Blake nodded in agreement. "I guess whatever was on board was very important."

"Yeah…" Ruby added, rubbing her forehead where Richter had cut her. She found her thoughts wandering to her childhood friend. He had looked so…empty, when they had fought. Ruby would have thought that he would have been extremely angry and bitter at her for mistaking him for dead, but there was no emotion. Except for when she had called him friend, it was tiny, but it was something.

"Still thinking about Richter?" Yang asked her.

Ruby turned to her older sister, "Yang, there is something seriously wrong with him."

"Well he did attack you."

"I don't mean just that. Something felt off about him." Ruby tried to clarify. "I mean, I didn't even know it was him until I ripped his mask off and before that his aura was…." She hesitated.

"Was what?" Blake asked.

"It's hard to explain, it was…rough and cold. It felt like I was being smothered by a blanket that had been left out in the winter." Ruby tried to explain, hugging herself. "It didn't used to feel like that."

"Your friend may have been brainwashed." Blake suggested.

Ruby pondered that idea, brainwashing, that made sense. "You think so?"

Blake leveled her stoic gaze on her, "You said he wasn't acting normal?"

"Not at all."

"Then it is a possibility."

Yang crossed her arms, leaning against the bedpost of her bunk beds, "If that's true, is there a way we could undo the brainwashing?"

"I don't know." Blake said, "But we could try." She finished, giving Ruby and Yang a small smile.

"The problem is we don't know what he and his friends are after. We don't know their next target." Yang informed them.

"I do." Weiss interrupted, no longer on her scroll. All eyes turned to her. "They stole a device called Sirensong."

Ruby gave her pale teammate a confused look, "Sirensong?"

"What is it?" Blake inquired.

Weiss let out a long sigh, "Normally I'm not supposed to divulge sensitive information of the Schnee Dust Company, but these are not normal times." The heiress turned to her faunus teammate, "Blake, remember how you said my dad's company was known for questionable business practices? This is one of them."

Weiss paused and Ruby saw how nervous she was. This wasn't easy for her pale teammate, airing out her family's dirty laundry. Ruby doubted anyone in the room would suddenly turn their back on her though. They had grown pretty close in their short time at Beacon.

Weiss began speaking again, "Sirensong is…a device that emits a high frequency aura wave over a large radius. It's purpose…" She hesitated, "…Was to attract grimm." Everyone gasped in shock, including Ruby. "My father funded the project to create it a few years ago."

Blake's eyes narrowed, "It attracts grimm?"

"Why on Remnant would you want to attract grimm?!" Yang questioned, becoming quite animated.

"The original plan was to use Sirensong to lure the grimm to the device, diverting them away from settlements outside the kingdoms." Weiss explained, "However, the lead scientist for Sirensong, Gena Celvic, received funds from…a questionable party, who took Sirensong and began using it to threaten villages."

Realization dawned on Ruby, "They held them ransom."

"Yes." Weiss confirmed.

"That's horrible…" Blake said.

Weiss continued, "The questionable party who bribed Dr. Celvic was Darion Shiver. Leader of a now defunct shady group called the Jade Dragons." She tapped her scroll a few times and showed the screen to her team. Ruby and the others saw a clean-shaven man in his thirties with short-blonde hair, blue eyes and a square jaw. "They had a whole network of villages paying them 'Protection' money until my sister broke up their operation. He's supposed to be in prison for fifty years."

"Supposed to be?" Yang repeated.

"He escaped two years ago, but went dark. Until now." Weiss said.

"You think he's planning on going back to his old ways?" Ruby suggested.

"It's the only thing I can think of. No one else would make such a concerted effort to steal the Sirensong." Weiss said, "Since Dr. Celvic, my father has had numerous scientists try replicate her effectiveness with the device, but none of them could get it to work nearly as well as she could. He's been shipping it all over the place trying to find someone who can do it." She explained.

Blake scowled, "Why doesn't he just destroy it?"

"To the public, he has." Weiss responded, "Behind closed doors though, he thinks there's still value in it. But having the Sirensong stolen may have forced his hand." The heiress began pacing back and forth, "If Darion Shiver starts using it again and everyone finds out. It would do our company irreparable harm. He'll have to agree to destroy it for real if we get it back."

"No." Ruby suddenly spoke, everyone turning to her in confusion. The red-cloaked girl smiled brightly at Weiss, "'When' we get it back." The ice queen's mouth was slightly open with surprise before she relented a small smile. She then fixed them with a severe look.

"Everything I've told you stays between us, got it?" Weiss demanded, receiving nods from Ruby and everyone else.

"Wait." Yang suddenly piped up. "They already have the Sirensong right? Won't this Darion guy use it right away?"

Weiss smiled smugly, "He can't. The Sirensong now can no longer be activated without a password which only Schnee family members know." She answered, "Right now all of us are in very safe locations."

Blake nodded in agreement, "I wouldn't want to try and kidnap someone in an academy full of huntsman."

Ruby quietly sat while her team continued to talk, mulling the boatload of information she just received in her head. They needed to retrieve the Sirensong, but they had no idea of it's whereabouts. The only way Darion Shiver could get the device to work is a password from a Schnee, which meant they would be the next targets. However, as Weiss said, each Schnee was in a pretty secure location. Kidnapping one of them would be very difficult.

The red-clad girl's eyes furrowed as she continued to think. In their current situation, they had no clue where Darion Shiver's hideout was to retrieve the Sirensong. At the same time, Darion's group were unable to make a move to retrieve a password, unless they wanted things to get very messy. It was a stalemate.

Unless.

Ruby's eyes widened as realization flooded her brain. Richter, he was there for the attack too, he was probably connected to this Darion Shiver in some way. If he was, then they might have a chance.

"Weiss." Ruby suddenly spoke, grinning, "I have a plan…"

Weiss took one look at Ruby's face and slapped a palm on her forehead. "Oh no…"

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Richter collapsed against a large boulder as the last beowulf dissolved away. The ex-huntsman's body was drenched with sweat and he was panting heavily. A sudden wave of nausea hit him hard and he fell to his hands and knees, dry-heaving. The hunger was sated for now, but it would be back, as strong as ever.

He returned to leaning against the boulder and was briefly reminded of when he had first met Ruby, how he leaned against her back after their victorious brawl with the bullies. Richter shook his head to try and drive the memory out. He hadn't had a flashback like that in over half a year, why was he getting them now?

The short ex-huntsman wiped his mouth with the back of his bandaged right hand as he shakily rose to his feet. He still had to meet up with his teammate, Novus Procter. However, he had to wait until his body stabilized from the feeding. Once it did, he should be able to move at twice the speed he did before.

Richter looked up at the shattered moon, gathering his thoughts. Once Darion had the Sirensong and the password to use it, their ultimate goal would be in reach. Supposedly, Darion was some former mob boss or something and Gena had confided in him that Darion didn't even want to take this job. He had grown comfortable living life under the radar. Something had forced his hand. If it was anyone, it would be Cinder. No one could manipulate people like she could, he knew from firsthand experience.

Finally feeling refreshed, Richter swung his left fist experimentally against the boulder he was leaning on. Large cracks instantly spidered across its surface. He flexed his left hand experimentally and then nodded in satisfaction, looks like he was good to go. With that, the ex-huntsman took off towards the rendezvous point. He had taken three steps when another image of Ruby and his other friends, Pearce and Trista popped into his head. Richter frowned in response.

This could be a problem.


	4. Shattered Worlds 4

**A/N: I must be doing something right if you've made it this far. Hopefully I can continue to entertain. At least I've been able to update at a rapid pace, one of the advantages of being in a lot of hospital waiting rooms.  
**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _2 years ago_

 _"This isn't going to work Ruby." Yang insisted. She was currently in the middle of a dirt field, originally the blonde huntress was practicing her punching, but now Ruby got it in her head to try something new._

 _"Oh it's going to work." Ruby disagreed. Richter watched them as he created a beachball-sized ball of fire with his new weapon, Dyrnwyn, currently in revolver-form. The fireball suddenly exploded in his face, causing his normally slicked-back hair to stand on end._

 _Yang pointed at Richter, "We've been waiting for the past five minutes for Richter to get a decent fireball going."_

 _Hearing this, Richter focused and tried again. This time, the fireball he created was slightly larger and to his mild surprise, more stable. He brightened up immediately._

 _"I've got it! I've got it!" He exclaimed excitedly. The fireball continued to grow and Richter noticed with alarm that it was becoming quite heavy. Although he struggled valiantly, he eventually tipped forward, the ball of fire at the edge of the revolver slammed into the ground and then exploded. Richter felt himself sailing backwards, landing hard on his stomach, knocking the air out of his lungs. He looked up at Yang and Ruby with a pained smile, "…Slight…miscalculation…."_

 _Ruby ignored the skeptical look Yang was giving her, "Trust me sis! If you guys get this to work it'll be the most awesome thing ever! We'll call it the Smokescreen!"_

 _Finally getting some air back into his lungs, Richter got back up to his feet, dusting himself off. "I don't know, the name kind of lacks power."_

 _Ruby turned to him, "How about…" the petite girl pumped her fist in the air, "Stinkbomb!"_

 _He rubbed the back of his head. "That makes it sound like we're destroying nose hairs not grimm."_

 _Ruby twisted her lips in thought, turning her back on him as she tried to think of a new name for the attack._

 _Richter walked up to Yang, keeping his voice low, "Help me out here!"_

 _Yang fixed him with a mild glare, her voice volume matching his. "You're the one who encouraged this, now you have to pay the price!"_

 _The young boy groaned in response, as much as he hated to admit it, he was the one who suggested Ruby come up with names for team attacks. He did it to keep her mind off the fact that she had been unable to craft a weapon of her own yet. Ruby made good parts, she just had to put them together in a way that wouldn't make them explode._

 _Ruby suddenly whirled back towards them, a gleam in her silver eyes, "I got it!" She exclaimed, slamming her right fist down on her open left palm, "The Steamcleaner!"_

 _"Uhhh…" Richter started, he needed to change the subject fast. The young boy searched his brain desperately for something to distract his cloaked friend, "How about you show us how we're supposed to do this again Ruby." He blurted out._

 _"Okay!" Ruby quickly agreed, "Richter you're going to create a fireball with Dyrnwyn and hold it to your left side, then Yang is going to punch it away. It'll land in a bunch of grimm and explode in a huge ball of glory! It'll be like…" The petite girl begin making all sorts of animated hand motions and sound effects of things exploding._

 _Richter could only stand and watch. Ruby was always energetic, but this was a whole new level. Making up team attacks must have really struck a chord with her._

 _He watched as his energetic friend suddenly stopped, putting her hands behind her back and staring at her boots, looking uneasy. "Well, in theory at least. But we can stop for today if you guys want to." She informed them, her voice quiet._

 _Something twisted in Richter, he wasn't sure what it was. Seeing Ruby look so down, so crestfallen, felt like he was getting hit in the chest with a sledgehammer. He didn't want to see such sadness in his friend's silver eyes._

 _"Screw it." He suddenly said, catching the attention of the sisters. "Let's give it one more shot." Ruby immediately leaped into the air, letting out a big cheer. Richter couldn't help but smile at her now uplifted mood. He glanced to his right to catch Yang smiling at him, which was confusing._

 _"What?" He asked the older sister_

 _Yang kept smiling, "Nothing." Was her simple reply._

 _"Okay…." Richter said, he'd worry about it later. Remembering Ruby's instructions, Richter held up Dyrnwyn to his left in revolver-form. He took a deep breath to steady himself and then pulled and held the trigger. A ball of fire began to rapidly expand from the gun's tip, it grew to the size of a volleyball, then a beachball, then even bigger. Soon it was larger than his small frame and Richter had to struggle to keep it stable._

 _"Yang! Now!" Ruby instructed, Yang didn't hesitate, leaping into the air and rearing her right fist back. She punched Richter's fireball hard enough to deform it's shape. It looked more like a disc then a ball as it flew off into the distance, generating an explosion so large it would do a big-budget movie proud._

 _"Whoa…" Yang whispered in awe._

 _"Holy shit…" Richter added, so amazed at the explosion that he slipped on his language._

 _"Woohoo!" Ruby cheered, standing excitedly in front of them, "What did I tell you guys? Was that awesome or what? The Flamboree is official!"_

 _Upon hearing Ruby's new name for the new team attack, Richter raised an eyebrow at her, "Seriously?"_

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present Day_

Richter approached the rendezvous point, finding a large muscled-man with a red mohawk. The man was currently sitting on a tree stump, dressed in a yellow vest, white pants, and yellow boots. A battle axe rested on his back. This was Novus Procter, his teammate during the mission.

"Well well well. Look who finally decides to show up." Novus said, tossing and catching what looked like a small metal barrel as large as his meaty palm. There were red lights on the top and bottom of it that blinked occasionally, that must be the Sirensong. "You know you should be thankful that I was there to pick up after your mess!"

Richter said nothing, merely walking by Novus. He was not a particular fan of the big man, too arrogant for his liking. The man was an escaped criminal with a few huntsman kills under his belt. To Richter, he was merely on the team for muscle.

"Oh the silent treatment!" Novus mocked sarcastically, "You know our employer said you used to be a chatterbox, what happened to that?"

Richter's expression darkened, "You would be grumpy too if you had needles stuck in you every day for over half a year."

"Why would you stick needles in yourself for over half a year?" Novus asked, standing up from the tree stump as he raised a questioning eyebrow. "You some kind of addict?"

"Something like that." Richter responded dryly.

Novus snorted, "Whatever."

The hideout for the team Richter was currently working with was actually built into the side of a mountain. The entrance was inconspicuous, a small triangle opening barely tall enough for an average person. It was one of the few times Richter was glad for his short height as he could easily enter. Novus on the other hand, had a tough time squeezing through with his large frame. The ex-huntsman heard a string of curses from the big guy as he entered behind him. Richter allowed himself a small smile of satisfaction at that.

Phase one of a three-phase plan was complete. As Richter walked into a circular room filled with tech, he spotted the scientist of the team. Gena Celvic, her shoulder-length dark-green hair was pulled back in a ponytail and a pair of goggles were covering her eyes. She wore a white labcoat, but underneath it were the clothes of someone who was into the hobby of hiking. Currently, Gena's back was to Richter and Novus, sparks flying out from the welding tool she was using. Supposedly, this project was phase three.

"Do you have it?" Gena asked them, not looking up from her work.

Novus held up the tiny barrel-shaped object in his right hand triumphantly, "Right here!" This time Gena did stop her work to look at Novus, placing her goggles on her forehead. She squinted for a second, looking at the object in his hands closely before she broke out into a grin.

"Excellent!" She exclaimed. "Set it down on the table there and I'll take a look at it shortly." Gena pointed to a metal table across from her as she returned to her work.

Novus complied, placing the Sirensong on the table, "Where's Darion?"

"In the meeting room." Gena responded, "He wants you two in there at your earliest convenience."

Novus gave her a quick salute with his right index and middle finger, "Got it." He continued on to the sliding door on the other side.

"Good to see you back as well Richter." Gena said to the short ex-huntsman as he began walking by her.

Richter gave her a quick nod. "Almost finished?"

"You bet!" Gena said excitedly, she began gesturing to the whole room around her. "This baby is gonna rock the world!"

Richter took in the entire room, "That's one way of putting it." Secretly, he hoped it was everything she cracked it up to be. He needed it to be. Phase three was the one thing that was driving him. The only reason that he accepted this mission.

Upon entering the base's meeting room, Richter noticed that Novus had already taken a seat at the rectangular-shaped table. Straight ahead from the ex-huntsman was the so-called leader of the team, Darion Shiver, who currently had his back to them, looking intently at a holographic map of Vale. He had on what looked like a dark-green military uniform with black leather boots that went just below his kneecap.

"You wanted to see us Darion?" Novus asked, Darion looked away from the map to regard Richter and Novus with his dark blue eyes, his square jaw tightening. Richter picked a spot on the wall and leaned against it, crossing his arms. He knew the leader of team DRGN, as Gena was unofficially calling them, was choosing his words. Richter hated the team name, he wasn't a damn academy student anymore.

"I heard the mission was a success." Darion spoke.

Novus crossed his arms behind his head and leaned back in his chair, "Yup, no thanks to Richter here."

Darion turned his sharp gaze on to Richter, "From what Novus told me over comms…." He began, making his way towards the short ex-huntsman. "…You met an old friend of yours and engaged her in combat rather than grab the target objective."

Richter's eyes narrowed, "What of it?"

Darion was only an arm's length away from him now. "I don't like it when a team member jeopardizes a mission for sentimental attachments." A scowl appeared on Darion's face. "They become liabilities."

"The mission was still completed wasn't it?" Richter said evenly. Darion continued to glare at him and Richter felt himself subconsciously reaching for Dyrnwyn. From what he had learned, Mr. Shiver was a dangerous man, one who had once commanded an underground empire. He was also altered, like Richter, although this fact was unknown to the rest of the team. However, the traits he gained were much different than his. If it came to blows, he wasn't sure who would win.

After a long tense moment, Darion relented, pacing away from Richter, "A girl with silver eyes, a red cloak, and wields a scythe. I've seen her before, back when Vale was attacked by the grimm. Never got a name though." He spoke casually, like he was talking with friends, but there was an underlying menace to it. "What is it?"

Richter turned his gaze to the holographic map. "Ruby Rose."

"Ruby Rose." Darion repeated, chuckling to himself, "Tell me Richter." The team leader suddenly fixed him with an intense glare, "What is Ruby Rose to you?"

Richter glared right back at Darion, "She represents a world." He replied without pause. "A world I no longer belong to."

"And you want to destroy it." Darion said, finishing for him, a smirk appeared on the square-jawed man's lips, which turned into a grin, which then turned into loud laughter. After a few moments of laughing he shook his head, still chuckling, stabbing a finger at the ex-huntsman. "That's good, that's very good Richter. That is some grade 'A' shit right there."

Richter ignored him, "Is there anything else you need to blab to me Darion?"

His leader's lips twisted downward in thought for a moment, "No, not right now at least."

The short ex-huntsman pushed himself away from the wall he was leaning on. "Good." He turned towards the exit, "Because I'm going to initiate phase two of our plan." Both men looked at him in surprise.

"What's the rush Richter?" Novus said, his tone mocking, "Eager to get back to your little girlfriend?"

"Actually yes." Richter's unexpected answer shocked them into silence as he intended, so he continued, "I know Ruby. We shouldn't underestimate her. The sooner we enact our plans, the better."

Novus scoffed, "That little red twerp? She's just a thorn in our side."

"That's true." Richter agreed, the exit door to the meeting room slid open and he walked through it, "But it's a very sharp thorn."

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _48 hours later.  
_

"This has to be one of the dumbest plans I've seen." Weiss stated into her earpiece. It was night time and she was currently walking around Vale, the shattered moon casting the city in an almost surreal light.

 _"Aw come on Weiss, Ruby's come up with way worse."_ Yang's voice sounded from the earpiece.

" _Hey!"_ Ruby's voice shouted with indignation.

 _"We've got you covered if something goes wrong, don't worry."_ Blake reassured her.

Weiss sighed as she continued to traverse the city. Ruby's plan was to use the heiress to bait out Richter, her old friend, which she had assumed was working with the ones responsible for stealing the Sirensong. She predicted that Richter would come after the heiress in order to get the password for the device and because it was somehow personal to him, he would try to do it alone. When Weiss asked how her team leader knew this, Ruby simply said that she knew her old friend. Once Richter made his move, they would ambush him and get the location of Darion Shiver's hideout from him. Weiss also suspected that Ruby had an ulterior motive to catching Richter, but she let it slide. If this worked out they would both get what they wanted.

The heiress went to all her favorite places. She even stopped to eat at a fancy restaurant. Still, there was no sign of Ruby's old friend. A vein began pulsing on Weiss' forehead, she was beginning to grow impatient.

"Are you certain your friend will show?" She spoke into her earpiece.

 _"Richter has always been cautious. He's probably waiting for more people to clear out. Give it a little more time."_ Ruby's voice urged her.

"You better be right about this." Weiss hissed.

 _"Trust me my BFF, this plan is rock solid."_

"I am not your BFF."

 _"Not yet."_

Weiss rolled her eyes at Ruby's mischievous tone. "Any more words of wisdom?"

 _"Whatever you do, don't call him short, he hates that."_

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _"You'll need to lure her to an unpopulated area to be safe, we don't want to run into any interference."_ Darion's voice sounded from the earpiece in Richter's right ear. He was currently shadowing Weiss Schnee, the heiress. _"Once you've secured the target, proceed to the Vale hideout, where Gena will be waiting, she will extract the password from Ms. Schnee."_

 _"I've been wanting to test this baby out for months!"_ Gena's voice sounded, Richter heard the sounds of electricity flowing in the background and winced. Gena's mad scientist ways could be a little frightening.

 _"Once we have the password, Novus will pick you up with a transport, which he has kindly borrowed from the Atlas Military."_ Darion continued.

 _"This thing has so many guns!"_ Novus sounded like he was a kid in the candy store.

 _"After that, we are home free."_ Darion said, _"Are you clear on your mission Richter?"_

"Yup." Richter answered simply, stealthily tapping his earpiece to turn off the mic. He saw Ms. Schnee begin to walk towards an outdoor dining area, lit up by tall lampposts. A quick glance around the place told him it was most likely deserted, it was time to strike.

He melted into the shadows, preparing himself.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Weiss was getting irritated.

She had been walking around for most of the night and her feet were starting to get sore. Weiss made her way to an ice cream shop that had an outdoor dining area, with round tables and lit by lampposts that were about eight meters tall. The heiress bought herself an ice cream cone and began making her way to the rear of the dining area. If nothing happened by the time she got done with her ice cream then she was going home and having a few words with that insufferable little red twerp.

Her huntress senses suddenly picked up the sound of a weapon shifting to her left. Immediately, Weiss extended her left hand to her left side, creating a shield of aura that blocked a barrage of shots fired at her. A moment later she saw a shadow land in a crouching position on top of a lamppost straight ahead of her. The shadow wore a grey cloak, was slightly taller than her and had slicked-back hair. It matched Ruby's description of Richter. Looks like she was right after all.

"You know, there are probably more comfortable places to sit." Weiss said.

"I prefer high places." Ruby's friend replied.

Weiss smirked, "Why? Because you're so short?"

She saw the boy's eyes flash with anger. "Oh, that's cold." He responded, his voice still calm with a tint of angry amusement.

Weiss shrugged, "Well I am known as the ice queen…" She stopped as she saw Richter aiming his pistol at her, a glowing black sphere with a white outline growing at the tip of the gun. The sphere suddenly shrunk as it fired a laser as wide as a train at her. Weiss' eyes widened and she quickly put a glyph at her feet and used it to boost her backwards leap. The concussive force of the laser blast was so strong it actually knocked her off balance in mid-air and she landed a little wobbly on her feet.

"Lasers!?" Weiss exclaimed into her earpiece, "You didn't tell me he shoots lasers!"

 _"He usually doesn't."_ Came Ruby's reply over the earpiece, _"It's taxing on his aura. He can shoot various other kind of large blasts if he wants as well."_

"Oh boy." Weiss replied dryly.

 _"Hey you called him short, I told you not to call him short!"_

"Oh shut up!"

Their conversation was interrupted when Richter leapt from the lamppost he was crouching on. The pistol shifted into a single-edged sword which he gripped tightly in his right hand, rearing back and preparing to strike.

Weiss produced her rapier, Myrtenaster and dropped into a battle stance, ready to fight.


	5. Shattered Worlds 5

**A/N: Hello everyone, hope you've been enjoying the story so far. After this chapter I plan to take a little time and decide what ending to do for this fic. There are several in my brain that I need to mull over.**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _2 years ago._

 _The Signal Academy cafeteria was loaded with young students, all seated at various round tables. There was a line at the eastern part of the room where the students grabbed their food. Currently, Richter had his tray filled up and was looking for a spot to sit._

 _It had been only a week since he started at Signal and already the homework was starting to pile up for him. Richter hated homework. He always aced the tests and for him that was enough. He would much prefer practicing with Dyrnwyn than sitting around a desk all day writing. The young boy didn't want to become a huntsman to be a glorified secretary._

 _"Aw! You got the last of the strawberry shortcake!" Ruby whined next to him._

 _Richter grinned at her. "Should've moved faster, isn't your semblance speed?"_

 _Ruby pouted, "No fair, you had a head start because I'd fallen asleep in class."_

 _"And whose fault is that?"_

 _Ruby answered with a series of indecipherable grumbles. Richter chuckled, she always amused him when she pouted like this. As they continued searching for a place to sit, Richter began catching snippets of conversation between some nearby kids._

 _"Look at that faunus in the corner, he looks like he just crawled out of the woods." One kid said. Richter looked in the southwestern corner of the cafeteria and spotted a lone male faunus, seated at a round table by himself. He looked tall for his age with brown hair and ears that reminded Richter of a lion. The faunus boy was dressed like he'd been living in the forests all his life._

 _"I bet he smells like a sewer!"_

 _"How'd a kid like him get into Signal anyway?"_

 _"Look at him sitting all by himself, no one's gonna go near him!"_

 _As Richter heard more and more of the pieces of conversation from the kids near him, he found himself clenching his teeth in suppressed anger more and more. What a bunch of condescending pricks those kids were._

 _"Richter…" Came Ruby's voice to his left, he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked to see her silver eyes looking at him with concern. She must have picked up on his growing anger. "Don't do anything reckless. You can't afford to get expelled."_

 _Ruby's words pierced through Richter's veil of anger and he started to force himself to calm down. She was right, if he got expelled he had nowhere else to go. His father, his only family left, was now in the hospital for a nasty heart disease. The only thing he had left to do was to fulfill his dream of becoming a huntsman. Where he could curbstomp monsters and get paid for it._

 _Still, he couldn't just let those kids continue to ridicule that poor faunus boy. However, he had to do it in a way that wouldn't be violent. Richter thought for a moment, his eyes suddenly lighting up as he came up with a solution. He began to walk with a purpose._

 _"Richter wait….!" He heard Ruby call from behind him, caught off-guard by his sudden brisk pace. Judging by her desperate tone, she probably thought he was going to beat up those kids. The short boy had another destination in mind though._

 _Arriving at the table where the lone faunus sat, Richter smiled politely at him, "Mind if I sit here?"_

 _The faunus' green-slitted eyes stared at him in surprise, "Huh? You actually want to sit with me?"_

 _Richter shrugged, "I don't see a reason not to." He readjusted his grip on his tray, "Unless you don't want to be bothered?"_

 _"N-no it's fine!" The faunus boy quickly replied, Richter took a seat. "What's your name?"_

 _"I'm Richter." He informed him, he heard the sound of a chair sliding back on his left and caught the glimpse of a familiar red cloak. He pointed in that direction, "And this is Ruby."_

 _"Hi." Ruby greeted cheerily._

 _"I'm Pearce." The faunus boy said._

 _"How have things been for you at Signal so far?" Richter asked, taking a bite out of his mashed potatoes._

 _Pearce shrugged, "The homework and stuff is fine." The faunus boy stabbed his fork into a piece of steak, "Socialwise? Not so much."_

 _"Yeah I know what you mean." Ruby said, "Richter and I are kind of in the same boat. I'm a weapon nut and Richter has short-guy syndrome." The red-cloaked girl stated, earning her a glare from Richter. She gave Pearce a big smile. "So we can all be awkward buddies!"_

 _Pearce raised an eyebrow, "Awkward buddies?"_

 _Richter chuckled, "She does this a lot, get used to it." He took moment to eat another mouthful of food before continuing. "So Pearce I was thinking that after class today we can go out to the training dummies and…" Richter stopped suddenly, his expression turning grumpy. "Ruby, did you just eat my strawberry shortcake?"_

 _He looked towards his red-cloaked friend to see her silver eyes wide, like a deer in headlights. She shifted her gaze continuously, refusing to look at him. Her cheeks were puffed wide, and bits of frosting were caked around her mouth. Ruby swallowed hard and her cheeks returned to their normal size. She held up her fingers in a "V." Sign, laughing nervously. Richter's eyes were narrowed at her now._

 _"I am not a crook?" She said tentatively. Richter suddenly made a grab for her hood, but Ruby was already gone in a haze of rose petals._

 _"Get back here you food thief!" He shouted at her, giving chase._

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present Day._

Shifting Dyrnwyn into pistol-form, Richter fired a rapid series of rounds at Weiss Schnee. The heiress responded by performing a rather impressive series of acrobatics, dodging all of his shots. She then extended her right hand and a glyph appeared in front of her palm. Multiple blasts of aura shot out from the glyph, all converging on where he was standing.

Richter was forced to dodge, diving to his left and transitioning smoothly into a roll. He could feel the blasts impacting just behind him, but his quick reaction had saved him any damage. As he rolled to his feet, he spotted the Schnee heading towards an alleyway. No doubt trying to stick to relatively unpopulated areas to avoid people getting hurt, what any huntsman or huntress would do.

The short ex-huntsman gave chase, darting down the same alleyway the heiress just jumped into. Looking ahead, he could see that she was ahead of him by a good fifty meters or so, jumping from one of her glyphs to the other repeatedly. Lifting his pistol, Richter took aim, channeled his aura through Dyrnwyn to create a beachball-sized ball of black-white aura, and fired. The auraball struck true, crashing into one of Weiss Schnee's glyphs right as she landed on it, shattering it. She fell unceremoniously to the ground below, rubbing her head as she slowly got back to her feet.

"You're not getting away that easily." Richter announced, shifting Dyrnwyn back to sword-form and dashing towards his target. With a sudden swiftness, she whirled to face him, her weapon, a rapier, at the ready. He smirked, preparing to deflect her first strike, when she suddenly pointed the tip of the blade towards the ground and stabbed it.

Too late, he realized his mistake, the ground froze all around her. Richter found himself sliding past the Schnee. Thinking quickly, he thrust his sword into the ground, using it to stop his sliding and anchor himself. Gripping the handle of Dyrnwyn tightly with both hands, he swung himself back around, planting both of his boots into his target's back. Weiss Schnee was knocked forwards, out of her ice pool, landing face-first on the concrete.

Richter dislodged his sword from the ground. He channeled his aura into Dyrnwyn and reared back, performing a powerful upwards vertical slash that scraped the tip of his blade against the ground, causing the ice to melt around him. The powerful slash generated a crescent-shaped blast of black-white aura that slid across the concrete, heading right for his target. The Schnee managed to roll to her right, narrowly avoiding being hit by the crescent wave.

Shifting Dyrnwyn back to pistol-form, Richter fired a handful of shots at the heiress. She had managed to rise to a crouching position, and thrust her right hand out, creating a glyph that soaked up his shots. The Schnee then made a few waving motions with her rapier and a few more glyphs appeared around her, all aimed at him. Richter raised an eyebrow, the heiress was not bad, defending and attacking at the same time. The first few glyphs fired their aura blasts, each about the size of his head. The short ex-huntsman blasted a few out of the air before switching Dyrnwyn to sword-form, his blade a silvery blur as it sliced up the remaining blasts. They exploded all around him, but didn't even leave a mark on his grey cloak.

Richter had barely finished destroying the last projectile when he saw Weiss Schnee charging in fast from straight ahead of him, her rapier pointed right at his heart. He barely sidestepped in time, turning around to find his target using her forward momentum to keep running from him. He narrowed his eyes at the retreating Schnee, it had to be a trap, but he had no choice, phase two could not be completed without her. It was time to use his other tools.

Tapping into his aura, Richter felt a wave of nausea run through him as black flames with a glowing white outline enveloped him. Ever since the brutal experiments performed on him, his aura had become "Tainted." Like ink being poured onto white paper. Heavily using it like he was doing now always brought a sickening feeling to him, but he could endure it. He just had to worry about not stirring the hunger within him.

The short ex-huntsman leapt up like a rocket, jumping high into the sky and clearing the rooftops of buildings easily. Because of how his quarry dressed, in a lot of white, it was easy to spot her position from his high altitude. She was still running through the alleyways. With his target spotted, Richter began his very rapid descent. He crashed down half a dozen meters in front of Weiss Schnee, forming a small crater in the ground as he impacted. He saw his target perform a small leap back in surprise at his explosive arrival. The black flames that had enveloped him disappeared.

"End of the line." He stated to the Schnee.

The heiress suddenly smirked, "You think so?"

Richter caught the glimpse of rose petals wafting in from behind him, before he could react a very familiar voice sounded from behind him.

"Stop right there Richter!" Ruby Rose ordered, the tip of her scythe embedded into the ground, the barrel of its sniper rifle section pointed at his spine.

"Ruby…." He hissed, of course she would be behind this. She had a knack for plans.

She smirked, "Looks like old habits die hard." The smirk quickly disappeared, her facial expression becoming determined. "Tell us where Darion Shiver is hiding."

"And why would I do that?" He asked her.

"Because we'll pound you into a pulp if you don't!" Another familiar voice said from above him.

Richter looked up towards the rooftop of the building on his left and spotted Ruby's sister, Yang Xiao Long, standing at it's edge. She wore her usual outfit, her eyes betrayed her surprise at seeing him alive. On the opposite building was a young woman with amber eyes and long dark hair with a bow on top of her head. Richter felt his anger spike at seeing her eyes. They were the same color as Cinder, the one who began his suffering. She wore an assortment of white and black, with part of her pants being purple.

He smirked at Ruby's elder sister, "Always so quick with the violence Yang."

"So it really is you Richter." She replied, "Why are you hanging out with losers like Darion Shiver anyway?"

The smirk on Richter's face quickly turned into a frown. "Because I need his help."

"You don't need his help Richter, we can help you." Ruby coaxed gently from behind him. "We can get your head straightened out." Richter half-turned his head to glance at her. She didn't know, she had no idea how much he had been changed by Cinder. If he had his way, she would never know.

"You can't help a ghost Ruby…" He replied softly, not able to keep the tiniest bit of regret laced into his voice.

"You look pretty human to me." The amber-eyed dark-haired woman said.

He scowled up at her. "How I look and what I am are two different things."

"This is getting us nowhere!" Weiss Schnee suddenly piped up, pointing her rapier angrily at him. "Are you going to tell us Darion Shiver's location or not?"

Time seemed to slow down for Richter as he assessed his options. The first one was to keep going with the original plan and kidnap the Schnee girl. The second one was to surrender to Ruby and her team and give them the location of Darion's hideout. While he was ready to immediately rule that option out, he found himself toying with the idea in his head. For a brief moment, a very brief moment, he fantasized about being a huntsman again.

Images raced through his mind, images of him practicing fighting techniques with Yang, building weapons with Trista, having Pearce pester him about finishing his homework. Finally images of Ruby popped up, of her coming up with weird names for attacks, stealing his strawberry shortcakes at lunch time, more images continued to flash through his brain, ending on that day she showed him Crescent Rose for the first time. Richter remembered how proud he was of her that day.

Then his brain shifted to images of the manor.

The endless horde of grimm, the blood he spilled, his screams of agony, the hungry growls of soulless creatures who sought to rip him apart. His mind shifted again and he saw her. He saw Cinder Fall, that cursed bitch with the red dress and those hated amber eyes. He saw the black tubes, as they filled up over and over. The agony he endured from those tubes that seemed to last centuries. Finally, he saw the mirror and his face upon it.

The day he realized he was no longer human.

Richter snapped back to reality, time resumed pace. The options had been assessed, but really the second option was never an option at all.

The short ex-huntsman spread his arms wide, his long grey cloak flourishing behind him, he saw Ruby's teammates tense at his action. He smirked, they were distracted by his cloak. Partially activating his semblance in his right hand, Richter hastily channeled it into Dyrnwyn and the sword became encased in a black-white aura. He then opened his right hand, releasing the sword from his grip. Gravity began to pull it towards the ground, the tip of the blade aimed at the concrete.

"Richter! NO!" He heard Ruby shout from behind him. She had picked up on what he intended to do, but she was too late.

The tip of Dyrnwyn's blade made contact with the ground and the alleyway exploded with black fire.


	6. Shattered Worlds 6

**A/N: Still hashing out the later details of this story, but I did get this chapter written in the meantime.  
**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _About twenty months ago._

 _The Signal Academy workshop was a complete mess as Richter walked in. Half-destroyed parts were littered all over the floor. Several tables and chairs had also been overturned. All from the actions of a small thirteen-year old girl._

 _Ruby was not pleased to say the least, she currently had a screwdriver and was tinkering with a piece of machinery at the last standing work table. Her eyebrows were furrowed in a scowl as she looked like she was trying to finesse the tool into something. Richter heard the sound of metal snapping and Ruby immediately slammed her fist onto the table. With a growl of frustration, the petite girl tossed the piece of machinery into the wall._

 _"So…not going well I take it?" He tentatively asked._

 _Ruby stood up from her seat, "It's a bunch of crap!" She exclaimed. "These shifting gears should be compatible with each other, but when I put them together, the locking mechanism won't work for some reason!" She began pacing back and forth. "I can switch out the locking mechanism, but that would mean I would need to make new shifting gears and…!" She ended her rant with a frustrated grunt, taking her seat again and holding her head in her hands, tears beginning to form on the edges of her eyes._

 _Richter frowned in concern. Four months had passed since they entered Signal Academy and Ruby had yet to make her own weapon. Normally, that would be a big problem, but Ruby's uncle had lent her one of his earlier model scythes, just until she could make one of her own. Ruby wielded the damn thing like she had been using it all her life, her skills with the scythe came so naturally, he felt a little envious. However, all of that wouldn't matter if she wasn't able to make her own weapon by the end of second year's first semester and given that making a weapon could take months, sometimes up to a year. Ruby's window of opportunity was growing short._

 _The sounds of frustrated sobbing reached Richter's ears as he took the seat opposite of his petite friend._

 _"Ruby…" He spoke softly, trying to find the words of comfort she needed to hear._

 _She looked at him, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Why can't I do it Richter!? Why can't I get these parts to work?"_

 _Richter grabbed Ruby's hands in response, surprising her, in truth it surprised him as well, but he didn't have time for that. "Listen to me." He gave her hands a squeeze. "You can do this. You're close to completing your weapon, I know it."_

 _Ruby shook her head, "But you made Dyrnwyn before we even started at Signal! It's been four months and I still haven't been able to make a weapon!"_

 _"I built Dyrnwyn for ease-of-use." Richter responded gently, "This weapon you're building is way more complex than what I can come up with." He gave her a smile, "The grimm won't know what hit them when you finish it."_

 _Ruby looked at him tentatively, "You think so?"_

 _He gave her hands a reassuring squeeze, "I know so. You'll find a way to make this work and when you do, this thing is going to be a terror on the battlefield."_

 _Finally, Richter saw what he was looking for. The briefest of smiles crossed Ruby's lips. "Thank you Richter."_

 _Richter winked at her, "You would do the same for me." He released her hands and stood up. "Come on. I'll help you clean up."_

 _Ruby wiped her cheeks and nodded, tending to the task with a spring in her step. Richter was glad for that. As he went to grab a broom and dustpan he looked down at his hands. They felt strangely cold now, but just a moment ago they were warm, when he was holding Ruby's hands. He stared at his hands for a moment more before shrugging, grabbing the broom and dustpan, he'd worry about it later._

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present Day_

Richter smirked as the dark flames erupted around him. He felt something whizz past on his right and saw Ruby run for the Schnee. The red-cloaked girl had just barely raced ahead of the flames, grabbing the Schnee by her waist and pulling her to safety. He himself had nothing to fear from his own flames. They wouldn't burn him.

Not wasting any more time, the ex-huntsman grabbed his sword and leapt towards the rooftop Yang was occupying. He executed a horizontal slash aimed at the blonde huntress' collarbones, but Yang's quick reflexes brought her forearms up. Ember Celica took the brunt of his slash as she was knocked a far distance away.

The hairs on the back of Richter's neck stood on end, with Dyrnwyn gripped tight, he reflexively raised his right hand to the sky, bending it at the elbow. A moment later, something clashed against the blade instead of hitting the back of his neck. Glancing back, Richter saw what looked like a pistol, a blade sticking out of it in what looked like a sickle, it was attached to a greyish-black ribbon, which the amber-eyed huntress was currently wielding. She was in mid-leap, heading towards him fast, her eyes were wide with surprise, must not have been expecting him to block so fast.

Switching Dyrnwyn to pistol form, Richter fired a rapid series of shots at the amber-eyed huntress. She grabbed her sheathe and began deflecting them, although she was successful, it knocked her off of her original trajectory. Instead of landing near his back, he had managed to deflect her to land on his right by several meters, out of melee range. He watched as she immediately dropped into a fighting stance. Richter followed suit, shifting Dyrnwyn into sword-form and gripping it in both hands.

They charged at each other, weapons a blur as they exchanged multiple strikes. She was good, he was not able to find an opening and her strikes were quick and strong. However at one point, she momentarily lost her footing and slipped. Richter wasted no time and brought Dyrnwyn down in a slash that ripped her in half from left collarbone to right hip.

The ex-huntsman's eyes widened in surprise, not expecting that to happen, the girl's aura should have been strong enough to take at least one of those. The two halves of the amber-eyed huntress suddenly turned black and disappeared. Realization dawned on Richter too late as he felt the huntress' blade slide across his left cheek, the force of the blow sending him sliding back a meter or two. Thankfully, his aura took the hit, He eyed her more warily now. Was that her semblance? Some kind of shadow clones to try and throw him off it seemed.

They clashed again, this time Richter was ready for the girl's shadow clone tactics. Cutting up the shadow clones and blocking her counterattacks. Eventually, he got through her guard and landed a vicious backhand with his left fist on her left cheek, staggering her. Richter went to press his offensive, when she suddenly switched her gun to pistol form. He quickly took a step backwards, weaving Dyrnwyn in a complicated pattern that blocked the amber-eyed huntress' shots. She then pounced on him, blades flashing.

Again they exchanged a rapid series of slashes, sparks flying everywhere between them. This time though, Richter had a better grasp on her tactics and was able to counter or defend against them readily. He was landing more and more successful hits.

After getting hit with a roundhouse kick on the right side of her face, the amber-eyed huntress swung her sword at Richter's head and he crouched under the slash. She followed through with the swing, twisting around and exposing her back to him. He quickly struck out with Dyrnwyn, aiming for her back. With impossible speed, she brought her left arm behind her so her hand was at the base of her spine, where the sheathe she was holding blocked his sword. Richter suddenly felt pain on the left side of his jaw as the amber-eyed huntress planted her boot there. The force of the blow knocked him onto his back as he slid across the rooftop.

Richter snarled in frustration, he was about to roll back to his feet when he suddenly didn't feel anything under him. The short ex-huntsman looked down and realized he had slid off the edge of the roof and was now hanging in mid-air, right above the explosion he had initially created. A red blur zoomed up from underneath him, the blur coalescing into the form of Ruby. She had her scythe prepped for an upwards slash, her face scrunched up in a minor scowl. Richter could do nothing, but brace himself.

The scythe sliced into his back, sending him higher. The short ex-huntsman's aura had taken the brunt of Ruby's attack, however she did manage to make a quarter-meter cut. He winced and was about to try to right himself in the air, when he saw Yang coming in at high-speed from straight ahead of him. Richter swiftly placed his sword in front of him with both hands, blade angled towards the ground. A tenth of a second later, Yang punched the flat of his blade with all the force of a freight train.

Richter sailed backwards, flying above the rooftops, grunting in pain. The hit he received might have knocked him out of the fight if he hadn't of blocked it. A familiar sound filled the ex-huntsman's ears from above him and he looked up to spot Weiss Schnee crouched upside-down on one of her glyphs, ready to strike him down. Richter's eyes narrowed in thought, they were relentless in their assault, trying to keep him from getting his bearings and they were succeeding. Ruby's team worked really well together, he might have to pull out his trump card.

Weiss Schnee dove downwards from her glyph, rapier aimed for his torso. His body parallel to the ground below, Richter spun like a top to his left, dodging the heiress' strike. As she was passing by him, he lashed out like a viper with his right hand, smashing Dyrnwyn's handle on the back of her skull. She crashed hard into the ground below, cracking the concrete and lying still. He didn't have time to celebrate as the amber-eyed huntress began firing her pistol at him, racing across the rooftops to get closer.

Richter deflected the shots with his sword, although none of the shots got through, they did keep him stuck in mid-air. A single rose petal appeared at the top of his vision and the ex-huntsman reacted immediately, quickly switching Dyrnwyn to pistol-form and firing a blast of black-white aura the size of his torso at the amber-eyed huntress, forcing her to roll out of the way of it's path and subsequently, stop her from firing at him. At the same time, the recoil from the blast pushed him out of the way of Ruby's scythe as it cleaved through the air he had once occupied a quarter of a second ago.

Dark-brown eyes met silver as Ruby switched her weapon to gun-form, gravity began pulling the two combatants to the street below. The two exchanged a handful of shots, each bullet clashed in the space between them and was deflected. Richter touched down in the middle of a cross section, watching as Ruby used the recoil of a shot to gain some distance from him. The ex-huntsman analyzed her move, what was she planning?

Cold suddenly washed over his lower torso as he found himself stuck in a large section of ice. Richter looked behind him and spotted the Schnee performing a backwards somersault away from him, he grit his teeth in annoyance, sneaky, very sneaky. He could break out of the ice using his semblance all he had to do was…

"Bumblebee!" He heard Ruby call out.

Richter looked towards her, eyes full of confusion. "Bumble what?" The words had barely left his mouth when something hard smashed into the right side of his face, breaking him free from the ice and sending him flying to his left. The ex-huntsman felt himself break through a window, crashing into what appeared to be an office building. He felt his body tear through various furniture before coming to a stop, landing in a seated position with his back against a partially destroyed cubicle wall.

"Right…team attack names….." He said to himself, voice laced with pain.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby leapt through the window Richter had broken on his involuntary flight, Weiss hot on her heels. She knew her sister and Blake wouldn't be too far behind. That last attack should have done it.

To her surprise, Ruby found her old friend still conscious, struggling to get up. He had managed to stagger to his feet when she planted her scythe into the ground, sniper rifle aimed at his chest.

"Please stop, I don't want to hurt you any further." The red-cloaked girl said, although her voice was gentle, her face still wore a serious expression. Richter paused, his dark-brown eyes seemingly trying to look into her soul. Ruby heard two pairs of footsteps behind her, looks like her entire team was here now. "No more cryptic answers." She ordered, "I need to know…" She gripped the handle of her weapon a little tighter. "Why didn't you return to Signal? Why didn't you come back to us? Why did you leave….." She paused as she mentally reined in her emotions. Focus, she needed to focus.

Richter stared at her for a moment, "Ruby, you look at me and you envision a return to the good times at the academy. A time of simple joys and innocence." He closed his eyes and shook his head, "But I can no longer go back. That kind of world is out of my reach now." A sigh escaped his lips, "It would be better to just show you." His right hand went up to his face, covering it so Ruby could only see his right eye, which fixed her with a cold glare. "The reason I no longer have a place in your world."

Ruby and her team watched in horror as Richter dug his fingers into his face and then pulled, ripping the flesh off. Skin as black as the night sky was what was underneath the flesh, with eyes that had black sclera and irises that glowed orange, like miniature suns. Orange veins that looked like tiny rivers of lava wriggled around his eyes, snaking all the way to his temples. A few of the veins passed through his eyebrows and traveled up the length of his forehead, where his normally slicked back hair stood spiked up. The bandages on his forearms transformed into armored grey gauntlets, the tips of the gauntlets having sharp points. Richter's grey cloak flourished as he stood tall and pulsed his aura, which washed over Ruby and her team, forcing them to plant their feet to avoid getting knocked away.

Ruby couldn't believe it, this thing, this creature of the night that was standing before her, it couldn't be Richter. He was kind, compassionate and full of life, this thing that stood before her emanated none of those. It was almost like she was looking at a grimm, almost.

The flesh of his face still in his right hand, Richter reared back and let out a roar and suddenly Ruby and her teammates found themselves in the air. In the next moment, she felt something slice her midsection. She felt her aura flare up, protecting her skin from getting cut, but the force of the attack knocked her back out of the building, across the street, and into the wall of the opposite building. Ruby heard three more sounds of impact and realized her team had all been knocked back as well.

The red-cloaked girl stood shakily to her feet, when something sped across the street from the opposite building. It was Richter and his right leg was tucked towards his chest, ready to deliver a vicious kick to her face. Ruby knew she wouldn't be able to get crescent rose up in time and her aura was diminished from the previous attacks. If she got hit now…

A flash of yellow suddenly appeared in front of her and Ruby immediately recognized Yang's long blonde hair. She saw her sister hunch over as Richter kicked her in the abdomen instead. Ruby managed to roll away to her right just as Richter sent Yang hurtling through the building, crashing out the other side. The red-cloaked girl noticed with alarm the trail of blood that flew from her older sister's lips as she sailed backwards.

"Yang!" Ruby called out. Richter turned his attention towards her, but Blake and Weiss suddenly appeared at his sides, Blake on his left and Weiss on his right.

Blake began firing her pistol like crazy, while Weiss summoned multiple glyphs that fired aura blasts. Richter deflected Weiss' blasts with his sword, while he blocked Blake's shots with his left hand. Then with a flick of his right wrist, he generated a dark wave of aura with Dyrnwyn, Weiss took the full force of the wave, sending her flying backwards. He immediately turned to his left and repeated the action, achieving similar results as Blake was knocked away. Richter returned his attention back to her.

"Do you get it now?" He asked, his voice distorted, wrong. His left arm had holes in the armored gauntlets, and thin trails of dark-grey smoke lazily rose up from the bullet wounds Blake had managed to inflict on him. If it caused any pain to Richter then he didn't show it.

Ruby could only stare in horror, so this is what Richter had meant. This was why he didn't try to return. He had been transformed into some kind of monster, straight from her nightmares. There's no way he could go back to Signal or Beacon in his current state.

Mustering her courage, Ruby swung Crescent Rose up diagonally, but as quick as she was, Richter was quicker, leaning back to narrowly avoid the attack.

"That's it." He said to her in his distorted voice. "Do what you were trained to do."

Ruby launched into an offensive storm, her scythe a whirling tornado as she slashed at Richter over a dozen times. Richter was weathering the storm however, staring at her stoically as he deflected and dodged her slashes. As she continued to attack, the petite girl glared into Richter's orange glowing eyes. She expected to see the cold promise of death in them, like any monster, but instead she saw eyes of sadness and pain. Seeing those eyes caused her resolve to weaken which in turn caused her next swing to be a fraction of a second slower. Instead of slicing Richter in half with a horizontal swing, Ruby hit only air as her old friend had leapt over the swing.

Recovering quickly, Ruby shifted Crescent Rose into gun form and began to aim upwards, only to discover Richter was no longer there. As soon as her brain processed that, she felt something cut into her aura shield on her back. The impact staggered her forwards and she was suddenly greeted with the sight of Richter's left fist heading towards her chin. Ruby felt herself get uppercut into the air, then immediately slammed back onto the street when Richter buried both of his boots into her stomach. Stars danced in the red-cloaked girl's vision as she bounced off the concrete, body parallel to the ground and about a meter into the air. She then felt herself get choked by her cloak as something grabbed her hood and yanked hard.

"I'm sorry Ruby." Richter said, his voice barely a whisper.

Ruby found herself sailing backwards, windows, furniture, debris and other things whizzing by her eyes in a blur of colors and motion. She felt herself hit something hard on the back of her head and then she knew no more. The red-cloaked girl's last thought was wondering who had turned one of her oldest friends into such a monster.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

The color from Yang's face drained as she watched a familiar red blur crash into the ground in front of her. Richter's kick had knocked her through the building and into a park. The flowers, trees and green grass a stark contrast to the mess they were in.

"Ruby!" Yang cried out, doubling in pain as she held her abdomen. Richter's kick had been brutal and most of her aura was gone. She would need a little more time to recover. However, that was the least of her worries at the moment, her little sister was lying supine in the dirt, a dozen meters ahead of her. Silently, Yang pleaded for Ruby to be alright.

An explosion from the building she was knocked from caught the blonde huntress' attention as she saw Blake sailing through the air, body reeling from a savage hit she had taken. The disguised faunus bounced off the ground once before managing to land on her feet. Still, the momentum continued to slide Blake backwards and she slammed her sheathe into the ground, dragging a long line across the park's grassy field before finally coming to a stop, about twenty meters away from Yang's position.

Blake had been roughed up pretty bad. A trail of blood was running down her right cheek from a deep cut plus there were gashes on her right bicep and her left side, above the hip. Yang's partner was desperately trying to catch her breath as she kept her eyes on the building she was knocked from.

"Don't worry about me!" Blake called to Yang. A moment later, Richter crashed down a short distance from Blake, taking slow steps towards her. "Tend to Ruby!" With that, the disguised faunus dashed towards Richter, firing Gambol Shroud repeatedly.

Yang cradled the unconscious Ruby in her arms, blood was flowing down the center of her little sister's face and she tried to wipe it away. Meanwhile, Blake had closed the distance with Richter and was in the middle of a melee skirmish with him. Blake's sword clashed with Richter's and she immediately left a clone of herself in that position, Richter realized his mistake too late and the clone exploded. The transformed ex-huntsman staggered back, grunting in pain and holding his face with his left hand.

Blake swiftly maneuvered herself behind him, executing four quick slashes on his back in rapid succession before finishing with a sidekick to the base of his spine. Richter stumbled forward and Blake took to the air, rearing her sword back for a critical blow. However, the transformed huntsman turned around impossibly fast, snatching Blake's face with his left hand and slamming her into the ground. The impact formed a crater around the faunus huntress' body and Richter followed through by stomping on her stomach with his left foot. Blood ejected from Blake's mouth as she cried out in pain, the crater widened.

Yang picked up Ruby bridal-style and leapt away from the battle. Blake was in trouble, but she needed to get Ruby a safe distance away before she jumped in. She didn't want her little sister to get hit in the collateral damage.

As she landed, she spotted Weiss drop in a small distance behind Richter. The heiress' combat skirt was torn in several places and there was a nasty gash on her right leg. The beginnings of a nasty bruise were forming on her left cheek and smudges of dirt were all over her clothes and boots. Yang knew Weiss would never be caught dead in public looking like that, but at the moment, she had no choice. Their opponent was a nightmare.

Yang watched as Weiss extended her right hand, her index and middle finger pointed towards Richter. A circle of glyphs appeared around the transformed ex-huntsman and before he could react, countless ice shards began firing out of them. Richter was knocked back and forth constantly, the ice shards too numerous and too fast for him to defend against properly.

Richter must have realized his predicament, because he suddenly turned towards Weiss and charged, breaking through one of the glyphs. He grabbed his sword in both hands, aiming the tip of the blade at the heiress and picked up speed. The heiress mirrored his action, dashing forward with Myrtenaster pointed at Richter's heart. Seeing what was about to happen, Yang covered Ruby's body with her own.

The tips of the blades made contact and a powerful shockwave washed over Yang. The blonde huntress' hair was whipped into a frenzy. Just as soon as it came, the shockwave expired and Yang looked to see Weiss in the middle of a backflip. Yang's eyes widened in shock and horror to see Richter had not been slowed from that fierce clash at all, shifting his sword into pistol-form. The blonde huntress tried to shout a warning to her teammate, but she was too late. As Weiss completed her backflip, she was greeted by the sight of Richter's gun, nearly point-blank in her face.

And then Richter pulled the trigger.

A wide blast of ebony-colored aura shot out from his gun, completely engulfing Weiss' petite form. The blast continued for a good three seconds before expiring and Weiss' smoking form flew limply backwards to collapse to the ground a fair distance from Richter.

"Weiss!" Yang shouted, thankfully her friend moved slightly and groaned in pain, but she was still unconscious. The blonde huntress frowned, the heiress' aura must have completely spent itself to take that blast. Yang felt herself clench her hands into fists. She felt her aura surge through her as she activated her semblance. "Richter!" She roared.

The transformed ex-huntsman looked at her with his creepy glowing orange eyes, the veins pulsing on his face. As they made eye contact they both realized what their next moves would be.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as Yang bent her knees and prepared to jump. Richter made a small leap towards Weiss, landing right beside her unconscious form. The blonde huntress leapt towards Richter, who was scooping Weiss up from the waist with his left arm. The blonde huntress reared her right fist back, preparing the strongest punch she could muster. She was so close to her target now….

Eight meters.

Four meters.

Two meters.

One meter.

Time seemed to resume it's normal pace.

Yang brought her fist forward with all of her might, aiming right for Richter's back. She felt triumph as her fist connected with something solid. The ground all around her cratered and various chunks of debris were flung all over the place. She pulled her hand back to admire her handiwork.

Only to stare at an empty crater, no Richter in sight.

The blonde huntress heard boots land a decent distance ahead of her and she looked up to spot Richter in a crouching position. He was still holding Weiss in his left arm and various bullet and slash wounds on his body were sending up thin trails of grey smoke into the air. The transformed ex-huntsman was also having trouble catching his breath. Yang snarled in frustration, preparing to give chase.

"Sure you want to do that Yang? Ruby doesn't look so good over there." He said to her, the way his voice distorted a bit disturbing. Yang blinked, glancing over where he left her sister to see Blake hovering over her. She watched as her partner looked at her, a frown on her face.

Yang clenched her teeth so hard she thought they might break before relaxing her fighting stance. "This isn't over Richter." She declared.

Richter rose to his feet, "I know it isn't." He gave his old friend a two-finger salute. "I'll see you soon." With that he leapt away, an unconscious Weiss in tow.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: I was going to make this chapter more brutal, but realized I should save it for the finale. Also need to figure out Richter's ultimate fate.  
**

 **Thank you for reading.**


	7. Shattered Worlds 7

**A/N: Okay I have the rest of this fic storyboarded, it's all a matter of finding time to type it up.  
**

 **Review Answers**

 **7Artemis7: It's the latter one. Richter is almost always enduring some kind of pain, having his face regenerate only for him to rip it off for a power increase fits in with that :D**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Nineteen Months ago_

 _"The winner is Richter Bremen by ring out!" The teacher announced. Richter half-heartedly raised his hand in triumph, then walked gingerly out of the ring. Damn did his opponent hit hard. Trista Cornucopia was a beast. The teacher went on to say that was the last sparring session for the day and the students began to clear out._

 _Ruby and Pearce immediately ran up to Richter, judging from the concerned looks on their faces, he didn't look like a victor. "You okay man?" Pearce asked him._

 _Richter rubbed his sore ribs with his right hand, "Yeah…I'll live…" He replied_

 _"That girl's tough." Ruby said, "I think you're the only one to have actually beat her in a sparring match." A smirk appeared on the petite girl's lips, "Well, at least until she fights me."_

 _He pictured that in his mind, Ruby Rose versus Trista Cornucopia. He had to admit, it would be a hell of a match._

 _"Uh…" Pearce suddenly spoke, "Don't look now guys, but she's coming this way."_

 _Richter looked behind him and sure enough, Trista Corncucopia was walking towards them with a purpose. The girl's long dark hair was swaying in her ponytail and crimson-colored eyes were staring right at him. What on Remnant did she want with him now? Before Trista could get within melee range of Richter, Ruby stepped up in front of him protectively. His petite friend's eyes were firm as the taller girl walked up._

 _"The match is over." Ruby stated with a little steel in her voice. "What do you want now?"_

 _"Easy." Trista replied, putting her hands up in a placating gesture, she looked at Richter. "I just wanted to say good match man. That was some trick you pulled to knock me out of the ring, very impressive. It's been a while since I've lost."_

 _"Wait." Richter said, eyeing Trista cautiously, "You're happy you…lost?"_

 _Trista placed her left hand on her left hip, "I like a good challenge. To be honest I thought I wasn't going to get one here at Signal." She smiled at Richter. "But you've given me hope Richter Bremen, let's spar again sometime." Winking at him, Trista walked past the group towards the exit, leaving the trio alone._

 _"Wow, didn't expect that." Pearce said, the first one to break the silence._

 _Richter rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, me neither."_

 _Ruby looked perturbed, "I can't wait to get her in a sparring match. I'll wipe that stupid smirk right off her face!" She stated, punching her right palm for emphasis. Richter was reminded of her older sister._

 _"Whoa, easy there killer." Richter said, confused. "What brought this on?"_

 _She turned to him, a look of surprise on her face. "What? You didn't see her smirking that entire time? It was infuriating!"_

 _Richter thought about it for a moment. "Well I mean she did smile…."_

 _"….Yeah that too!" Ruby interrupted, "Smiling like she owns Signal!" Richter could only watch in bewilderment as Ruby began to do a mock-impersonation of Trista. "I'm Trista Cornucopia! I can't find any challenge at Signal! Richter's the only one who can challenge me!" She returned to her normal voice, right hand clenched into a tiny fist of fury. "Well I'll show her a challenge! Looks like Trista has a new rival!"_

 _There was a few moments of silence before Pearce broke it, "Right…so I think we found Ruby's trigger."_

 _Richter was trying very hard to keep the smile off his face. "You know, I think you're supposed to say that to the person you're going to have a rivalry with."_

 _Ruby turned to look at him. "Really?"_

 _He shrugged in response, "I could be wrong."_

 _"I can't afford to take that chance!" Ruby responded, raising a tiny fist of fury in the air, "Not when it comes to my new rivalry!" In a shower of rose petals, Ruby was gone._

 _Pearce looked at Richter, noticing the grin he was trying very hard to conceal. "You did that on purpose didn't you?"_

 _This time, Richter couldn't hide his grin, "Maybe."_

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present day_

Ruby felt like her skull had been cracked open like an egg as consciousness began to return to her. Opening her silver eyes, she found herself in the familiar settings of her dorm room. But the last thing she remembered was fighting Richter….

The petite red-cloaked girl sprang up into a sitting position immediately only to have a familiar set of hands grab her shoulders. Yang looked at her with eyes full of worry.

"Easy, the fight's over, Richter's gone." Her older sister informed her.

Ruby locked eyes with Yang, "Is everyone okay?"

"My aura has already helped me recover, Blake is resting, she took some bad hits. We were more concerned about you. You've been out for about eighteen hours."

The red-cloaked girl waved off her concern. "I'm fine, just feel like someone dropped an ursa on my head, my aura should take care of that in a bit." Ruby paused for a moment, realization dawning on her. "Wait, where's Weiss?"

Yang wouldn't meet Ruby's eyes as she spoke, "Richter took her."

She immediately deflated upon hearing that. "Oh…"

"Ruby I hate to say this, but I don't think there is any saving Richter. You saw what he turned into back in the city. He's not the Richter we know anymore."

Ruby wanted to agree with her sister, she saw Richter rip his own face off too. Revealing a monster underneath. She wanted to write him off as a lost cause, somehow changed into a freak of nature without hope.

However, she could never forget those eyes, and even though they were burning with the fury of the sun, those eyes were unmistakably human. Richter was still in there, no matter how much he tried to deny it. Even so, her attempts to get through to him had failed so far, now the bad guys were one step closer to getting the Sirensong. If Darion Shiver succeeded, a lot of innocent people were going to be in danger. Whether Ruby liked it or not, Richter had roped himself in with Darion's group and if he stood in her way….

The small red-cloaked girl didn't respond to Yang, instead leaping from her bed to the floor. She began to make her way to the bathroom when her older sister placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Ruby…!" She started.

"It's okay." Ruby replied, turning to face her sister, her expression somber. "I know what I have to do."

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Darion Shiver's Vale hideout was a far cry from the main one. It was a cluster of concrete square or rectangular rooms in the northeastern part of the city's sewer system. Rusty pipes lined the walls and the rooms were dimly lit by lamps powered by dust.

It was in one such room that Richter and Gena were currently occupying. Richter himself was leaning against the wall right next to the exit. Standing in the center of the room was Gena, who had a bucket of cold water in her hands. The bucket was intended for the room's unconscious third occupant, Weiss Schnee, who was currently strapped to a high-tech chair of Gena's design by her wrists, waist, neck, and ankles. The chair also had some kind of horizontal metal plate instead of a headrest, placed firmly on the back of the heiress' skull. Various cables were attached to the back side of the metal bar, feeding into a cylinder-shaped machine that stood slightly above Richter's waist and was as wide as Novus Procter's thick frame.

Gena dumped the contents of the bucket onto Weiss Schnee's face. "Time to wake up princess!" she exclaimed. They watched as the Schnee's eyes suddenly opened wide, sputtering for breath as the cold water dripped down her hair and clothing.

Weiss Schnee took a look around her surroundings before fixing a cold glare on Gena, "If you know what's good for you, you'll release me now."

"Oooh scary." Gena said in mock-fright. "But you're in no position to make threats here little girl."

Richter scowled at the heiress, "Tell us what the password is to activate the Sirensong." He said, his tone calm.

Weiss Schnee turned her glare towards him, "You won't get anything from me you freakish monster!" She spat, "I find it hard to believe you were ever Ruby's friend!"

Gena studied the heiress' face for a moment before turning around to look at Richter with raised eyebrows. "You used your altered form didn't you?"

Richter shrugged, "I had to, Ruby's team was strong."

A whistle flowed from Gena's lips, she returned her attention to the captive Schnee, "Guess you and your friends are a couple of badasses huh? That won't matter to my machine here though. It'll pick your brain, piece by piece, until we have the password. You could just do as Richter asks and tell us…." Her lips twisted upwards into a sinister smirk, "….But you're much too stubborn for that aren't you?"

Weiss Schnee's answer was silence. Richter felt his respect grow for the heiress. When he was first briefed about her, the ex-huntsman thought she was just a spoiled brat trying to pretend to be a huntress. She had proved him wrong in their earlier battle and now, staying strong in the face of incoming torture. She was definitely a tough cookie, but it was about to make her life hell.

Gena took the goggles she had placed on her forehead onto her eyes. The mad scientist flashed a grin that showed teeth to the heiress.

"Good." Gena said, walking over to a console placed on top of the cylinder-shaped device. The mad scientist began typing furiously. "Let's get this show on the road."

The metal plate on the back of Weiss Schnee's skull began glowing a turquoise color. Richter watched as the heiress suddenly tensed up as she started to feel the effects of the machine ripping information from her brain. Gena had told him that the machine copies the brainwaves of the target into a digital form, housed in the cylinder-shaped machine. The mad scientist then had to sift through the information, filtering it. To Richter, it sounded like trying to find a needle in a haystack and Gena herself said it would not be an easy task. However, Gena had informed "Team DRGN." That she had a one hundred percent success rate with this machine.

She also said that half her victims suffered from irreparable brain damage. Apparently, ripping information from a person's mind was a very risky and dangerous endeavor for the victim. Judging from the pained look on Weiss Schnee's face, it looked like what Gena said was true.

Richter watched as the heiress' lips peeled back from her clenched teeth more and more. Finally, after three minutes, the white-clad girl finally let out a cry of pain.

Gena let out a small laugh devoid of any compassion, "It's okay to scream, this will only get worse from here."

And five minutes later, scream Weiss Schnee did.

Richter silently stood up from his place on the wall and left the room, leaving Gena to her work. He was not particularly fond of torture, being the victim of the practice himself. He had the distinct feeling though that the heiress wouldn't say a word through conventional interrogation. Maybe if he could have kidnapped one of her friends as well and threatened their life they would have got her to talk much easier.

Richter didn't realize he was frowning until he was halfway down the hallway leading away from the torture room. This wasn't sitting well with him, the torturing, the thoughts of kidnapping. They were leaving a bad taste in his mouth and a sick feeling in his gut. And yet, it was his only choice.

As if to further drive the point home, a sharp pain in the short ex-huntsman's stomach nearly caused him to trip over his feet. Richter braced himself against a nearby wall with his right hand. The hunger, it was back, sooner than he expected. Most likely from using his altered form. Richter's stomach felt like a thousand razorblades were tumbling around in it. He took two more small steps before leaning over and vomiting a pool of blood onto the concrete floor.

Wiping his mouth with his left bandaged hand. Richter growled weakly in frustration. He was tired, tired of the pain, tired of the hunger and tired of the suffering. Regaining his posture, the short ex-huntsman began making his way deeper into the Vale sewers. There was bound to be a few stray grimm down there.

Soon his final goal would be at hand, it was the only thing that kept him going.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

"Are you sure this is the right spot?" Yang asked, dubious. They were currently in the northeastern section of Vale, near the outskirts.

"That's what my scroll is telling me." Ruby replied, staring intently at the device's tiny screen. A bandage was wrapped tightly around her forehead.

In case they failed and Weiss was indeed kidnapped, Ruby and the heiress had devised a contingency plan, placing a tracker in the heel of Weiss' boot. The ice queen had assured them that it would not be detected by conventional scans and searches, boasting that it was the latest model in a collaboration between Atlas and the SDC. Ruby's scroll was keeping tabs on the tracker's location, but it had led them to a place with nothing, but half-destroyed buildings and empty streets. Nothing that looked like a hideout.

"There's nothing here though." Yang said, stated. Ruby silently agreed, was the tracker broken? She really hoped it wasn't. Weiss was probably in real trouble right now.

Blake's eyes suddenly widened, "They're below us."

Ruby looked at her faunus friend for a moment before realization hit her as well. "The sewers!"

Blake nodded in agreement. "The White Fang used to have hideouts in Vale's sewers. It was ideal for concealment, but not for recruiting."

Yang grabbed her nose as her face contorted in disgust. "Yeah, who would want to stroll around in a sewer."

The team quickly found a manhole and pried it open, Ruby looked at her teammates, her facial expression severe, "Okay, when we get down there our priority is to get Weiss. We can't let them get that password."

"What about your friend?" Blake asked, "If he transforms on us again it could be a problem."

"As much as Richter thinks he's no longer human, a transformation like that has to take a toll on him." Ruby surmised, "If anything, I can distract him while you both grab Weiss."

"Ruby." Yang said, Ruby made eye contact with her older sister. "Don't let your feelings get in the way. If you get a chance to take Richter out…."

"….I know" Ruby interrupted, breaking eye contact with Yang and grabbing Crescent Rose from it's holster. "I'll do what I have to." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to steady her nerves, then reopened them. "Let's go." She ordered, leaping into the sewers.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Black smoke flowed from Richter's mouth as attempted to get air back in his lungs. He was on his hands and knees, body spasming as the hunger was satiated. The dissolving bodies of several grimm were scattered around him. The concrete room's one Dust lamp, hanging loosely in the center of the ceiling, provided the only light.

Although the hunger had been dealt with for the time being, Richter had a new problem. Ruby Rose would not get out of his blasted head, her silver eyes were there to greet him every time he closed his own. Those damned eyes, full of compassion and concern for him, when they didn't need to be. When he was in his altered form, Ruby had shown some hope that she had realized what he really was, but at the last moment, she faltered. It was the perfect opportunity for him to end the red-cloaked girl's life.

But instead he only knocked her out.

He didn't know why he didn't take the killing blow, his body just moved on it's own accord. It was frustrating, ever since he had seen Ruby again, the images of his past life had been coming back at a steady pace. It was almost as if his mind was taunting him, showing him the life he wanted, but could no longer have and it was starting to affect him. He had to stop it.

"Enjoying your meal?" A familiar voice said from behind him. Richter bristled at the voice, he stood up to face Darion, who looked slightly out of place in the sewers with his green military dress uniform.

"What are you doing here Darion?" Richter questioned, "Weren't you getting prepped for phase three?"

Darion grinned, "Oh phase three is all set and ready to go my vertically-challenged friend!" He boasted, "So I thought I'd get a front row seat to when little Weiss Schnee finally cracks."

"It might be a while." Richter informed him. "She's surprisingly resilient."

The former leader of the Jade Dragons pursed his lips, nodding. "Yes she is. Normally that wouldn't be a problem…." The mirth in his eyes vanished, replaced by hostility. "…Except you failed to kill Ruby Rose and her team."

"The mission wasn't to kill them, it was to kidnap Weiss Schnee." Richter stated.

Darion's eyes widened in mock-surprise. "Oh, so NOW you're following mission objectives!" His eyebrows furrowed in anger. "I never knew you could be such a FUCKING team player Richter!" The former leader of the Jade Dragons held up two fingers, "Two missions, two chances you had to kill her and you didn't! Now we have some loose ends!" He roared, closing the distance between himself and Richter in two quick steps. He glared down at the short ex-huntsman, the volume of his voice dropping, but no less menacing. "I'm beginning to think you have a soft spot for little Ms. Rose."

Richter's hand gripped the bottom of Dyrnwyn's handle, "If you think you can do better, be my guest." He answered.

Darion continued to glare intensely at Richter for a long moment before smiling, "As tempting of an offer as that is, there is other business I have to attend to. Like achieving absolute power." The taller man began to walk past Richter, when he stopped about a meter past the short ex-huntsman. "Just remember Richter, I'm the reason you are so close to your final goal. Keep that in mind the next time you get fucking sentimental."

And with that he walked away, leaving Richter to reflect on his words.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Weiss did her best not to scream, but it was difficult. It felt like someone was carving out pieces of her brain, over and over again. She felt another scream building and bit her lip hard enough to draw blood in an attempt to prevent it.

And failed.

The scream of agony erupted from the heiress' lips quickly followed by Gena Celvic's cruel laughter. Weiss never imagined the creator of the Sirensong would be so callous. She could only hope the tracker in her boot was still working, if not, well, she didn't want to think about that right now.

"That's it, scream for me." Gena demanded, "It's so nice seeing a Schnee get what they deserve. Just a bunch of rich snobs that's all you are!"

Weiss felt the pressure on her head decrease slightly, enough to make it just bearable. She greedily inhaled lungfuls of air, trying to stow away her strength for the next round of torture. Footsteps reached her ears as Gena maneuvered her way in front of the heiress. The goggles covering the mad scientist's eyes couldn't hide the hatred Weiss saw in them.

"When I built the Sirensong, it was my greatest achievement." Gena began. "I was expecting to be promoted, a raise, new office, parking spot of my own, all that jazz. Do you know what your father gave me?" Her eyes narrowed, "Impossible deadlines to meet in order to improve the Sirensong. Instead of the praise I deserved, all I got from your father is more demands." She spat to the side, "The bastard could never be satisfied."

Weiss hated to admit it, but that did sound like her father. He always had a knack for demanding the impossible from people.

Gena continued, "And so, when Darion came to me and offered me a fat paycheck and free reign to build whatever I want, whenever I want. There was no way I could refuse. I let him have the Sirensong and in return I was able to make all sorts of wonderful toys!" She put her hands on her knees and leaned close, so her face was only a foot apart from Weiss'. "Like the one you are strapped in now!"

Weiss silently glared at Gena. If only she were free. She would knock that stupid grin off Gena's face.

"Oh don't get mad at me." Gena said, "Blame your father for being such a stingy prick."

The sound of the sliding door opening caused Gena to turn to look at who was disturbing her. Weiss also switched her gaze to the room's new occupant and she felt her anger spike at the sight of him. Darion Shiver in the flesh, no doubt coming to make her life even more miserable.

The former leader of the Jade Dragons took one look at Weiss and whistled at her current condition. "Looks like someone has been put through the ringer."

Gena removed her goggles from her eyes, placing them on her forehead, "Darion? What are you doing here?" She asked, confused.

Darion shrugged, "I wanted to see our esteemed guest. After all, it's rare that a Schnee graces the riffraff with their presence." He walked up to Weiss' chair and Gena moved back to her console, letting him take her previous spot. He smirked arrogantly at Weiss. "How are you holding up Ms. Schnee? Ready to give us the password yet?"

Weiss responded by spitting in Darion's face, she was actually surprised at how well she had aimed it, almost getting the saliva in the bastard's left eye. Darion calmly wiped off her spit with his left hand, pursed his lip in thought for a moment and then delivered a vicious backhand to Weiss' face, nailing her in the right cheek. The heiress saw stars dance around her vision from the blow.

Darion's eyebrows were furrowed into a scowl now. "Still some fight in you, I can respect that." He glanced at Gena, "Make yourself scarce, I need to have a little one-on-one with our guest."

Gena had a frown on her face, typing furiously on her console. "I don't think that's a good…."

Darion quickly interrupted, his voice roaring, "...I could give two shits what you think Gena!" His sudden change of volume catching Weiss off-guard, "Leave! Now!" The mad scientist seemed to hesitate for a moment before finally leaving the room, the sliding door hissing shut behind her.

The former leader of the Jade Dragons began pacing back and forth in front of Weiss, "You know Ms. Schnee, we got a lot in common."

Weiss managed to find her voice through the pain. "…I don't threaten innocent people into compliance…." She weakly replied.

Darion shrugged, "Maybe not you, but can the same be said of your family? Ask the faunus working in your father's precious Dust mines if they feel the same way. The fact is, we both command the obedience of those underneath us." He smirked, "With the Sirensong, everyone will be forced to bend to my will."

"Or else you'll sick a horde of grimm on them?" Weiss inquired with a snarl.

Darion chuckled, "Yeah, that's what I used to do before your wonderful sister threw me in prison. But I'm a changed man now, a new man with new fucking plans!" He walked to the wall next to the door and leaned against it casually. "The problem with the old system I had was that the grimm were too unreliable. You can't order them around and you can't reason with them. They follow their own instincts. There were a few times in my heyday where a village would give in to our demands, but the grimm would still attack. The morons were probably so scared of what we might do that the fear drew them anyway"

The tall green-clad man actually laughed and Weiss felt herself cringing. Forget Richter, this guy was the real monster.

Darion walked over to Weiss and kneeled in front of her, eyeing her curiously. "Have you ever seen the grimm overrun a village Ms. Schnee?" He asked softly, "It's a bloodbath. I think the thing I remember the most were the screams. If you listened hard enough, it was almost like they were singing a tune." He lightly bumped her right knee with his left fist in pseudo-camaraderie, "A song of pain and fear! Cracked me right the hell up!"

"You're sick!" Weiss hissed, struggling against her bonds.

The psychopath merely smiled and stood up, "Maybe." He said, beginning to walk slowly away from her, his back turned in her direction, "As entertaining as it was watching the grimm gobbling up an entire settlement. It was bad for business. The body count eventually got high enough to where your sister intervened and that was it for me." He turned around to face her again. "Or so I thought. I've been given another chance and I don't intend to waste it."

"Doesn't sound like you're a new man at all." Weiss observed.

Darion smiled in response, "Oh, but I am little Schnee." She noticed with alarm the sclera of his eyes turn black and his iris' turned the color of jade, his voice also became distorted, just like Richter's. "I am."

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: Setting the stage for next chapter ;)**

 **Thanks for reading.**


	8. Shattered Worlds 8

**A/N: I really liked Episode 9 of Volume 3. If you haven't seen it yet, I suggest going to Rooster Teeth's website and watching it. :D  
**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Seventeen Months ago_

 _The sound of rain drops hitting stone repeated infinitely in Richter's ears, but he paid it no mind. His clothes were soaked for being out in this dismal weather for an extended period of time, but he did not care. The only souls left in Patch Cemetary were himself, Ruby and her sister Yang, Pearce and Trista. They were all standing a respectful distance away from him as he continued to look at the tombstone of his recently buried father, Robert Bremen. The words "Beloved Father." Were engraved on the stone tablet._

 _Numbly, Richter recalled what the doctors had said was the cause of death, heart failure. After battling the disease for a couple of years, he finally lost that battle. Partially due in part that they didn't have enough money to pay for medical expenses. Unbeknownst to Richter, his father had put the rest of their savings into getting him into Signal. The boy didn't find out until he visited the bank and discovered the transactions._

 _Richter winced as he recalled his father's hard life. A man who had lived in a village outside the kingdom of Vale all his life. He had worked tirelessly to keep his home village safe, but no matter how hard he tried, no matter how many grimm he killed, he would still lose loved ones. First it was his brother, then his mother, then his friends, as more and more grimm were felled by him, he seemed to lose more and more people he cared about._

 _Still, Robert Bremen persisted, drove on by his wife and son. Richter honestly didn't remember his mother much. He just knew that one day she had packed her bags and left. Apparently she had left his father for some rich man in Vale for "An easier and safer life." It was the straw that broke the camel's back for Robert._

 _They moved to Patch, his father a broken man. He was still a kind person to his son, but Richter always noticed the sadness that clung tightly to his dad's eyes. A man who tried to protect everyone and lost everything. That was the life he lived._

 _And it wasn't fair._

 _Richter understood why his dad had put all their money into getting him into Signal. It's what Richter had wanted the most. It was his last gift to him. From father to son. His father was always there to help him through hard times, but now he no longer had that luxury._

 _He was all alone, the last surviving Bremen. There was no other family to turn to, from now on he either succeeded in his dreams or he would crash and burn._

 _A tiny hand placed itself on his right shoulder and he mechanically looked to see Ruby looking at him. No words were exchanged as he stared into her silver eyes questioningly. She then wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug. Richter felt the tears begin to flow freely from his face then, but you wouldn't be able to tell from the rain. He wrapped his arms around Ruby's tiny waist, rested his chin on her right shoulder and let the grief flow out of him, holding onto his petite friend as if she was his only lifeline._

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present Day_

"I've received some 'Improvements' Since escaping from prison." Darion said in his distorted voice.

Weiss could only watch Darion's jade-green eyes helplessly as the exit door slid open and a trio of beowulves entered the room. She expected Darion to tear them to pieces, but she was surprised when he didn't make a move. She was even more surprised when the grimm didn't attempt to eat him either, instead standing on their hindlegs, looking at her silently with their red glowing eyes.

Understanding dawned within Weiss' mind, "You! You were the one controlling the grimm that attacked my father's train!"

"Yup." Darion confirmed, "Thanks to a certain party's experiments, I now have the ability to control grimm. There is one catch though."

One of the beowulves walked up to Darion, who proceeded to grab the back of the grimm's neck with his right hand and bite into the creature's jugular. Weiss could only look on in fascinated horror as Darion violently ripped a huge chunk out of the beowulf's neck then reach in with his teeth for another bite. The former leader of the Jade Dragons repeated this action a few more times until the beowulf dissolved away.

Black smoke emanated from Darion's mouth as he spoke, "The diet leaves…much to be desired. However, with each one of these bad boys that I eat, I get stronger." He grinned as he wiped his mouth with his forearm, "Imagine what I could do if I ate an entire army of grimm."

Apprehension gripped Weiss as her imagination ran away with the idea. Someone who got stronger by eating grimm, using the Sirensong to summon a large group of them. They could become strong enough to crush any resistance in Vale.

"I won't let you!" Weiss vowed, struggling against her bonds with newfound desperation.

Darion chuckled at her, "You're strong little Schnee, I'll give you that, but you can't last forever. Once we retrieve the password to the Sirensong from your brain, I'll have the key to becoming a god!"

A strange sound erupted from Weiss then, a sound that would have been the last thing she expected to do, she laughed. Maybe it was the hours of torture she had endured, maybe it was the way Darion delivered his little speech. Whatever it was, it triggered something in the heiress and she found she couldn't stop laughing.

Finally calming down, Weiss fixed him with the cruelest stare she could muster. "You? A god? Don't make me laugh." She told him. "All you are is a fake, a pretender. You're nothing more than a glorified psychopath who somehow was lucky enough to get some power to control grimm."

Weiss saw Darion frown at her, literally seeing the sanity drain from his face as it began to contort in rage, but she didn't care anymore. What could he do? Cause her more pain?

So the heiress continued, fueled by her recent torment. "And what? You think this is somehow going to give you the ability to conquer Vale?" She was surprised at how condescending her laughter sounded. "You couldn't even conquer the villages that reside outside the kingdom's walls! All you are is a crazy guy who thinks he's smarter than he actually is."

Weiss suddenly found her face twisting to the left as far as her neck restraint would allow as Darion struck her with the back of his right fist. She had barely registered he had hit her when he struck her again with his right hand. This time, the heiress' face snapped to the opposite direction, blood flying from her lips. Weiss reeled once more from a third hit and her vision and hearing became muddled, looks like she pushed him too far. Examining Darion's livid face, she couldn't help, but wonder if she was going to die here. Killed by a man throwing a psychotic tantrum.

Darion reared his right hand back for another punch when suddenly a hand gripped his right forearm from behind him. The psychopath's eyes broadened in surprise and Weiss weakly looked beyond him to see a distinct grey cloak. She willed her vision to focus, was that Ruby's friend?

"What do you think you're doing?" The shorter man asked, voice filled with quiet malice.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

"We're getting closer." Ruby said softly to her team, doing her best to be as quiet as possible. So far they had met no resistance, which Ruby didn't like, things were too quiet. It also didn't help that the sewer tunnels felt like a maze, already they had come across two cross sections, but thanks to Weiss' tracker, they were able to navigate it.

Yang glanced at her partner, "Blake, do you see anything?

Blake's eyes moved swiftly, analyzing everything around them. "Well, there's no traps hiding in the shadows that I can see." She reported, "I doubt they'll just let us walk right to Weiss' location though."

"Keep alert." Ruby said, holding Crescent Rose a little tighter. "We're in the enemy's turf now."

The team continued down the narrow tunnel that was barely wide enough for all three to walk through. Eventually the tunnel merged with a large square room about the size of a sparring ring. The ceiling was a good five meters high and the concrete floor was littered with pieces of metal and broken pipes. To Ruby, it looked like someone was tearing apart robots of some sort.

Ruby fanned out with her team as they entered the large square room. Yang watched the left, Blake, the right. A few Dust lamps on the ceiling provided some light thankfully, and Ruby used it to try and see as much as possible. She had just passed the center of the room when she heard something make a clicking sound behind her, followed by a whirring noise.

"Look out!" Yang warned them, Ruby didn't think twice, she dove ahead and slightly to her right, hearing bullets impact the wall ahead of her. Taking a quick glance back the way she had come, the red-cloaked girl spotted a circular-shaped bladed weapon rotating and firing in it's cardinal directions. Ruby knew what kind of weapon it was, a chakram, a disc-shaped weapon designed for throwing.

They had set off someone's trap.

The chakram kept firing and the three huntresses had to dodge or deflect the bullets away. Somehow, it was tracking their movements, forcing them to adjust their defenses. Growing tired of this, Ruby picked the wall nearest to her and ran up it, bullets trailing in her wake. Pushing off the wall with her feet, the petite girl performed a backflip, making her body parallel to the floor and sticking her scythe out under her. The sharp edge of the scythe whistled through the air, but just as it was about to come into contact with the chakram, the circular-shaped weapon suddenly fired to Ruby's left. The chakram used the recoil of the shot to move itself just out of her scythe's path.

Ruby landed and faced the direction the chakram had moved to, only to see it in someone's hand. She quickly noted the gun emplacements on the chakram at it's cardinal positions, at the northeast part of the weapon were grips, which the hand was holding at the moment.

"Well, well, well. It looks like we picked up some rats." A feminine voice said, stepping into the light was a woman in her late twenties. Her shoulder-length green hair was in a ponytail and she was wearing a pair of goggles over hazel eyes. She was clad in a white-tanktop with brown hiking shorts and boots. Ruby recognized her from the information Weiss had given her. Gena Celvic, the scientist responsible for the creation of the Sirensong.

Gena looked at the three young huntresses and scoffed, "You're the only ones here to rescue the Schnee? Daddy must not love her too much." She mocked, tapping a monitor on her left forearm which flashed a few times before dimming. "There we go, looks like you just lost the element of surprise."

"You're the only line of defense?" Yang asked, looking skeptical. "I could snap you with my pinky finger."

The scientist answered with a smirk and flung the chakram in her left hand at Yang. Ruby watched as her older sister easily deflected the weapon with her right fist, bouncing it off the wall to her right. Yang wore a cocky grin as she began to advance on Gena, but Ruby realized with sudden horror that her sister had no idea the chakram she deflected had changed direction and was heading straight for her back.

Ruby called her sister's name, trying to warn her of the danger while simultaneously trying to take aim with the rifle portion of her scythe. The petite girl realized she wasn't going to make it, the chakram was less than a meter from Yang's back now…

The sound of metal clanging against metal reached Ruby's ears as the chakram was suddenly deflected into the ground. Ruby looked and saw Blake pulling back the sickle-form of her weapon, Gambol Shroud. The red-cloaked girl let out a sigh of relief, her faunus teammate had come through in the clutch.

"What the?" Yang said in shock, looking behind her left side to see the chakram embedded there. The blonde huntress looked towards Blake and exchanged nods, realizing the amber-eyed girl had saved her.

Ruby aimed the rifle portion of her scythe at Gena, "Watch it, she's more dangerous than she looks." She was about to fire when she saw Blake walk in front of them.

"You guys go on ahead, I'll deal with her." The cat faunus announced.

Ruby almost argued, almost, but she knew they were running out of time. Every second standing here meant Darion's crew were that much closer to extracting the password from Weiss, they needed to hurry. With a quick nod to her sister, she took off in a sprint, running past Gena on her right, while Yang ran by the scientist on her left. She heard the sounds of Gena throwing the chakram at her back, quickly followed by the sounds of them colliding with another metallic object. Taking a quick look back, Ruby saw Blake had curved Gambol Shroud in sickle-form, inserting it into the space between the faunus' teammates and Gena. Sparks on the ribbon portion of the weapon flew out as the chakrams made contact with it, and Gena's weapons returned to their owner's hands. Ruby returned her attention forward as Yang and her continued further into the sewers.

"I am your opponent." She heard Blake say, steel in her voice.

"No, you're a future test subject." Gena replied.

Ruby heard the clash of metal a second time and then she was out of earshot. She said a silent prayer for Blake as she moved on.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Weiss wasn't sure what to think. She had been spared further abuse by Ruby's old friend, but why? Weren't Darion and him working together?

"What am I doing?" Darion said, repeating the question that Richter had asked him, "I'm beating some sense into this bitch!"

She saw Ruby's friend contort his face into a fierce scowl, the intensity of it catching her off-guard. "Looks like you're trying to beat her to death to me." He narrowed his eyes at the back of Darion's head. "Last time I checked, we need her alive."

"There are other Schnee's out there." Darion replied with a tone of dismissal, Weiss was astonished. Did she really tick him off that bad?

"This will set us back months! Maybe years!" Richter snarled.

Darion shrugged, his unworldly eyes focused on the heiress, "We're young, we can wait." The former Jade Dragon leader took a menacing step towards Weiss and she braced herself, but then he suddenly changed direction as Richter tossed him into the wall on her left using the taller man's right forearm. Darion landed upright, pushing himself off the wall only to be stopped by the tip of Richter's sword pointed at his throat.

Darion looked at the shorter man incredulously, "Are you being serious right now Richter?"

"One more step and you'll be cosplaying as the headless horseman." Richter's eyes were calm fury. "You let her provoke you Darion. You need to calm down."

"No, what I need to do is choke the life out of her to teach her a lesson."

"She can't learn anything if she's dead."

"Well, it'll make me happy."

Again, Darion tried to take a step forward, but Richter didn't budge, still keeping his weapon trained on the taller man's throat. Weiss again tried her restraints, this could be the opportunity she had been waiting for to escape. Something suddenly caught the attention of Richter and Darion as they looked behind Weiss to the console.

"The silent alarm." Richter said to himself.

"Look Richter." Darion started, annoyance in his tone. "I don't have time for your shit right now. There's killing that needs to be done."

"I'm warning you." Richter replied, his tone was stone cold, "Not. Another. Step."

Darion laughed in response, "Come on! We both know you don't have the balls to…."

Weiss felt something wet splash onto her left cheek, followed by the scent of iron. Blinking once, she was greeted by the sight of Darion clasping his heavily bleeding throat with both hands. The terrorist leader's unworldly eyes were bulged, looking right at the man who had grievously wounded him.

Blood dripping from his blade, Richter delivered a hard kick to Darion's unprotected stomach, knocking him through the wall into an adjacent room. The short young man let out a string of curses, running a hand through his slicked-back dark hair and causing a few bangs to fall in front of his forehead, stopping just past his eyebrows. He quickly regained his composure though and ran over to Weiss. She was surprised to see him start undoing the restraint on her left wrist.

"What are you doing?" She asked him, thoroughly confused.

Richter finished undoing her left wrist restraint and began working on the one on her right, "Getting you out of here." He nodded towards the hole he had put Darion through, "More specifically, away from him."

"But you just killed him!" Weiss exclaimed, her right wrist was free now and she thought about hitting him, but even lifting her arms required some effort. She was unarmed and her aura was severely depleted, she needed some time for it to recharge before she did anything drastic.

"If only." Richter replied bitterly, working on the second-to-last restraint. "I didn't separate his head from his shoulders like I wanted to."

"But that was still a fatal wound." Weiss stated.

Richter shook his head, "Not for him it wasn't." He finished with the last restraint, walking behind her. The sounds of him rummaging through a box could be heard. Weiss raised herself from the chair and immediately had her legs give out from under her. The heiress fell to a sitting position, where she saw Richter's black boots walking up to her again.

As well as the familiar sight of Myrtenaster.

"You'll need this." Richter stated, handing her weapon to her. Weiss took it, feeling a little safer having it's familiar weight in her hands. She quickly placed it on her belt as Richter offered her his left hand. "Come on."

Weiss hesitated. Even though he was Ruby's friend and was helping her now. He was still the reason she had been put in this situation in the first place. Not to mention he could transform into some kind of nightmarish monster.

A pulse of aura to her left washed over her and Weiss was immediately hit with a wave of nausea. This aura, it felt like the underworld itself. Was that Darion's aura? She shivered involuntarily.

Richter cast a quick glance from where the aura pulse came from. "Look, I know I'm not exactly your favorite person at the moment, but if you stay here, he's going to kill you." Weiss had to admit, he had a valid point. Richter wasn't hellbent on her murder, he was the lesser of the two evils until she could reunite with her team.

She took his hand and he pulled her to his feet, turning his back to her so that she could climb on, piggy-back style. If it was any other time, she would have refused in embarrassment, but her current circumstances were too dire for her dignity at the moment. Once she was secure on Richter's back, he opened the exit door and took off to his right down a narrow concrete tunnel.

They didn't get too far before Weiss started seeing the telltale red slits of grimm eyes in the dimly-lit corridor. A group of creeps, grimm with thick forelegs and a lizard-like tail, were running directly at them, most likely under Darion's control. Weiss caught movement out of the corner of her eye and saw Richter unsheathe his sword. Without even slowing down, Ruby's friend cut down every grimm standing before them, every slash from his blade a killing blow. The heiress felt adrenaline flow through her body, they were in the clear!

And then an unholy roar reached her ears. A roar that sounded like a mixture between a beast and a demon. The roar of something that wanted not just her life, but her very soul. Weiss felt her blood run cold upon hearing it.

Suddenly an arm burst forward from the wall on her right, a clawed arm the color of coal and covered with scales. Weiss clung to Richter tightly as he ducked under the swipe the arm took at them. He then shifted his sword into pistol-form and shot into the hole the arm had made, earning an angry howl from whatever monstrosity owned that limb.

"What in the world was that?!" She asked Richter.

"My guess….would be Darion." He answered. Without breaking stride, he began to fire at the corridor's ceiling behind them, blocking it with the rubble.

"Can't you transform into your monster thing and fight him?" Weiss inquired.

"I can't." Came Richter's quick reply, "My aura took a big hit when I did that against you and the rest of Ruby and her friends." He spared a glance at her. "How's your aura doing?"

Weiss took a mental inventory, she was already feeling a little better, but it was a far cry from being in fighting shape. "I need a few minutes still." She told him.

The corridor gave way to a fairly large-sized rectangular room. The only exit being the tunnel across from their current position. Weiss and her unlikely companion were less than two dozen meters from the exit when an ursa major dropped down in front of them, forcing Richter to stop. Soon after, the sound of concrete shattering could be heard as a pair of holes suddenly appeared on the walls to their flanks. Beowulves and Ursai began pouring through the new openings. Weiss looked around and mentally cursed, even if she was in perfect shape, she would have had a tough time killing all of these.

The ursa major in front of them sought to crush them with it's right forepaw, but Richter leapt backwards, avoiding the blow. She saw Richter's head turning slightly every second, most likely gauging how many grimm there were and also if he could kill them all.

Letting out a frustrated grunt, Ruby's friend set Weiss down, Richter never let his eyes off the large group of grimm. "Stay back!" He ordered, switching his weapon to sword-form and holding it in a reverse-grip. The heiress didn't know if he was brave or stupid as he unfalteringly walked towards the grimm.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Richter continued advancing on the grimm, his eyes daring them to attack. Although it was a large pack of grimm. He had seen worse back in the manor and now he was stronger. It still wouldn't be a simple fight, but at least this one he could win. The problem was, he needed to do this fast, before Darion caught up to them.

A group of two beowulf alphas and five standard beowulves rushed to meet the short ex-huntsman. One of the alphas barked out what seemed to be an order and as one, the pack of grimm all dove at Richter. He held his sword out to his right side, waiting until the grimm were nearly on top of them, then stabbed the ground.

An explosion of black flame disintegrated the beowulves. The Beowulf alphas, who were more resilient, were thrown into the air. Richter leapt through the shroud of fire and positioned himself between the two beowulf alphas. He sliced the one on his right in half with a vertical downwards slash and immediately transitioned into a vertical upward slash on his left, cutting the second alpha in half at the waist. A fraction of a second later, he shifted Dyrnwyn into pistol-form and used the recoil of a shot to get back to the ground faster, narrowly avoiding a slab of concrete the size of a car being thrown at him by an ursa.

Richter landed and immediately crouched, avoiding the horizontal swipe of a beowulf's claws to his right. He planted his right elbow into the grimm's stomach, sending it sliding back a short distance, just enough for him to fully extend his right arm and fire his gun point-blank at it's head. Two creeps leapt through it's dissolving body which he dispatched with two quick shots. Sensing danger from behind him, Richter rolled forward, barely avoiding the ursa major's claw swipe aimed at his spine.

As the short ex-huntsman came back to his feet he shifted Dyrnwyn into sword-form, propelling himself forward like a rocket. He encased his sword in black flame as he raced towards a trio of ursa. Richter stabbed one of the stocky grimm in the gut and activated his aura, lengthening his sword with a blade of dark fire and also impaling the two other ursai behind it. Exerting himself, he pulled upwards with his sword as hard as he could, splitting the three ursai in half vertically as he ripped the blade free.

The moment the blade touched the ground, Richter was struck on the left side of his face by the right forepaw of the ursa major. The large grimm had been stalking him the entire fight, waiting for him to be vulnerable and finally it had gotten it's chance. Richter slid across the ground on his right side, he had barely come to a stop when a beowulf alpha appeared in his vision, it's jaw wide open and it's claws ready to sink into his flesh. Swiftly shifting Dyrnwyn into pistol-form, Richter juggled the Beowulf in the air with a barrage of shots. He then vaulted to his feet, making sure to plant one of his boots into the chin of the beowulf alpha, sending it sailing away from him. The short ex-huntsman shifted his weapon back to sword-form and charged back into the fray.

Richter continued to be on the move, never staying in one place for long. He mainly focused on any grimm that began looking in Weiss Schnee's direction as she couldn't properly defend herself yet. The short ex-huntsman left dissolving bodies in his wake as he continued to harass the ursa major hounding him. The damn thing's armor was tough even by grimm standards and he was having a hard time finding a weak spot.

He attempted to decapitate the ursa major, but the blade merely cut a gash into its neck. The large grimm roared in pain and delivered a massive backhand to his ribs, knocking him into the wall on his left. Richter managed to keep his footing, stars dancing across his vision as he dimly saw the ursa major charging for him. He felt the wind tease the left side of his face as he narrowly sidestepped a blow to his head. Instead of caving in his skull with it's left forepaw, the ursa major had lodged it into the wall. It growled in frustration as it tried to pull it's limb out and that's when Richter noted the lack of bony armor on the back of it's head. Not wasting any time, Richter plunged his sword into the vulnerable area, slamming the large grimm's face into the wall in the process. He felt a wave of relief as the ursa major began to dissolve.

Looking around, the short ex-huntsman was surprised to only see smoking husks of dying grimm. It was over. He was just about to run back to Weiss when something large dropped in from the ceiling above. Debris flew everywhere and Richter used his left forearm to shield his face from it. Richter scanned the area in front of him, trying to decipher what had just dropped in, was it another ursa major?

He got his answer when a monstrous voice roared, "RICHTER!"

Standing in front of him, in his altered state, was Darion Shiver. The tall man had grown even taller, maybe eight or nine feet in height. Bat-like wings protruded from his shoulderblades and a pair of foot-long ivory-colored horns rested on his forehead. The eyes' sclera were pitch-black, the iris' glowing the color of jade. His military dress uniform was in tatters, only the pants and boots remained. Instead of bare skin, the psychopath was covered in ebony scales. In Darion's right hand was his weapon, which looked like an over-sized butcher's knife, there was a hole at the center of the blade's tip which housed the rifle portion.

Richter mentally cursed as he gripped Dyrnwyn tightly in both hands, this was not going to go well.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: I'm splitting this series of battles into two chapters as it was going to be longer than the very first chapter. Which reminds me, I was going to ask those who are still reading this if they want shorter, but more frequent chapters or longer, less frequent ones. I'm not sure which is more preferable.  
**

 **As always, thank you for reading.**


	9. Shattered Worlds 9

**A/N: So, remember how I said I didn't want to make a chapter as long as the first one? Might have done it here.  
**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Fourteen Months ago._

 _Richter sat at the southwestern round table in the Signal Cafeteria that had become the de facto hangout spot for him and his friends. Ruby sat across from him while Pearce and Trista sat on his left and his right respectively. Everyone was in a good mood as the last of their classes for the school year were finally finished. They now had two months to do whatever they wanted._

 _Ruby raised her arms, stretching them as far as she could. "I can't believe our first year at Signal is already finished! Just three more years until I can apply to Beacon!"_

 _Trista raised an eyebrow at the red-cloaked girl, "You want to go to Beacon?"_

 _"Of course." Ruby answered, "I had family that went to Beacon."_

 _"Team STRQ was also from Beacon." Richter added._

 _Pearce finished eating his morsel of food before poking his fork in Ruby's direction. "Yeah wasn't your uncle part of Team STRQ? The same uncle that teaches here who's drunk all the time?"_

 _Ruby rubbed the back of her head shyly, "Yeah…that's my uncle…my parents were part of Team STRQ too."_

 _Both of Trista's eyebrows raised this time, "Even your parents?" She whistled, "No wonder you're so good with that scythe."_

 _Pearce was beaming, "Man, that is crazy, I had no idea you came from a family of badasses! Why didn't you tell us this sooner?"_

 _"I don't want anyone to think I'm special or anything." Ruby quickly replied, "I'm just a normal girl trying to become a huntress like everyone else."_

 _Seeing that Ruby was becoming uncomfortable with the attention, Richter interjected himself into the conversation. "Anyways, what academy are you planning to apply to after Signal, Pearce?" He asked, changing the subject, Ruby shot him a grateful look and he winked in response._

 _Pearce's eyebrows furrowed as he gave the question some thought, "I'm thinking Shade, so I don't have to dress in these stuffy clothes all the time." He answered._

 _"Yeah the dress code is pretty relaxed there." Richter agreed._

 _Trista frowned at her faunus friend, "But your taste in clothes out of your uniform leaves much to be desired." She pointed out, "Why do you dress like that anyway?"_

 _Pearce responded with a shrug, "The loose clothing gives me more freedom of movement." He held out his arms in a "T." position, looking at his uniform in dismay. "I feel restricted in this stuff, it's like someone tied my left arm and right leg together and I'm trying to fight baddies like that."_

 _Trista nodded, "That makes sense."_

 _Richter turned to the ponytail-wearing huntress, "How about you Trista?"_

 _She turned to Richter and grinned, "I'm thinking Haven, I've heard good things about them. I mean Pyrrha Nikos won the Mistral Regional Tournament for the third time this year!" She gushed, "She'll make history if she does it again next year. I definitely want to see what kind of huntsman they have in Mistral."_

 _"What about you Richter?" Pearce questioned, all eyes turned to him. Richter knew what academy he wanted to apply to, the one his dad would never stop talking about._

 _"Beacon." He said without hesitation._

 _Trista looked at him like he grew two heads, "Why Beacon?"_

 _Pearce grinned, leaning back in his chair and resting the back of his head on his hands. "You just want to go to the same academy Ruby is going to. You guys are joined at the hip."_

 _Richter shook his head. "That's not the main reason I want to go there. I mean don't get me wrong, Ruby being there as well is a bonus." He began playing with his food, "But Beacon was the academy my father failed to get into."_

 _The entire table instantly went silent and Richter couldn't blame them. He had been a complete wreck after his father's death three months ago. Becoming withdrawn and barely sleeping and eating. It took a lot of coaxing to get him out of his shell and have him back to his normal self. They didn't want him to relapse._

 _"I'm sorry." Pearce said sincerely, "I didn't mean to bring up memories of your old man."_

 _"I know." Richter replied, "It's fine Pearce, really." He reassured his friend and the rest relaxed, "I wanted to get into Beacon to prove to my old man that he wasn't a failure at raising a good son. I was going to be a kickass huntsman, one he would be proud of." He continued playing with his food, in truth he wasn't sure he could pull it off. A huntsman was the elite of the elite and he wasn't part of any prestigious family or trained by anyone remarkable. He was just, well him._

 _Trista smirked, "You'll be more than kickass Richter."_

 _Richter looked at her in mild surprise, "You think so?"_

 _"I know so." She confirmed, he had to admit, her faith made him feel better._

 _Pearce raised his glass of soda, "Hey hey hey, here's to graduating Signal and getting into our respective huntsman academies!"_

 _Everyone voiced their assent and knocked their glasses together in the center of the table. As Richter was bringing his glass to his lips, he spotted Ruby across the table looking at him intently and he paused for a moment. She was the only one who knew his other reason for wanting to become a huntsman. His father had many regrets, but the biggest one was that he was unable to become a full-fledged huntsman. Robert Bremen felt that if he had, he might've been able to protect the people he loved. Richter wanted to know if he became the best of the best, would he be able to protect the ones he cared about?_

 _Ruby gave him a small smile as she brought her cups to her lips. He smiled back as he drank from his own cup, he really hoped he would._

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present day._

Ruby struggled to keep her footing as the corridor she was in with Yang began to shake violently. After a handful of seconds, it stopped.

"What was that!?" She exclaimed, did someone set a bomb off or something?

"It's nothing good. Whatever it is." Yang said, uncharacteristically solemn.

"Weiss must be in trouble." Ruby theorized, "We'd better hurry."

The sisters began to pick up their pace, sacrificing stealth for speed as their sense of urgency increased. Doors began to appear on the sides of the corridor and they checked each one, kicking them open and doing a quick scan for their ivory-haired comrade. Ruby and Yang found nothing for a dozen or so doors, the rooms were either completely empty or they had sparse boxes stashed in the corners, nothing that indicated their friend was held prisoner there.

Finally, after several minutes of searching, Ruby heard her sister call her over to a door that was different than the rest. For one, it was a sliding door, more advanced than the previous ones they had seen and another, the door had a big hole through it.

"I think we found where they kept Weiss." Yang said grimly. Ruby stepped through the hole in the door to see a rather high-tech chair with restraints. A horizontal metal bar sat where the headrest would be and several wires were attached to it. The wires led to a fat cylinder-shaped device with a console on top of it. The most alarming thing though was the blood splatter on part of the chair and on the floor, plus the hole in the wall to her right that was roughly the same size as the one on the door.

"Oh no, Weiss…." Ruby whispered, she really hoped her partner was okay. The signs did not look good however. Did Richter do this? Had he really fallen this far? One thing was for sure, she needed to see him again. Whether it was to beat some sense into him or to end his misguided actions for good, she wasn't sure yet.

Yang pointed further down the concrete corridor. "Look at that, the ceiling caved in, but it looks like someone tunneled their way through the rubble."

"Or some THING." Ruby added. "We'd better hurry, Weiss must be in danger."

Abandoning stealth, the two sisters sprinted down the corridor, hoping that their white-clad teammate was still breathing.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Blake clenched her teeth in frustration as she continued to try and get through Gena Celvic's defenses. So far, her opponent had managed to block everything she had thrown at her and to make matters worse, she was actually forcing her on the defensive. There was always a chakram in Gena's hands to block her shots or Gambol Shroud's sickle, and the other chakram always seemed to be in her face, constantly testing her defenses. Gena would swap which chakram was in flight and which was in her hand constantly and Blake was hard-pressed to keep up. How did a scientist get so skilled anyway?

Shifting Gambol Shroud to sickle-form, the faunus huntress tossed the bladed weapon at Gena's face. Like a dozen times before, the skilled scientist reached up and blocked it with one of her chakrams, this time the one held in her right hand. Blake quickly noticed that her opponent's left hand was empty, she spotted the other chakram a few meters to her right just in time. Tightening her grip with the sheathe in her left hand, the faunus huntress quickly positioned her left hand so that the wrist was centimeters above her right shoulder. She then angled the sheathe towards the ground, effectively covering her right flank, a moment later, bullets from the floating chakram bounced off the sheathe.

Concentrating, Blake created a shadow clone at her current position, back flipping away from it. As soon as her boots hit the ground she leapt for the floating chakram, Gambal Shroud in sword-form with the blade raised high. Before she could bring the blade down however, the chakram shot her in the gut. Blake's aura shielded her, but the impact knocked her away from the circular weapon. She executed a quick backflip to slow her backwards momentum, landing on her feet once more. Across the room, she saw the unmanned chakram use the recoil of a shot to land back in Gena's free hand. A smirk playing on her lips. Blake had to fight the urge to growl in frustration.

Suddenly the ground began shaking and the faunus huntress had to struggle to keep standing. At first, she thought it was something that her opponent had done, but looking across the room, she saw that Gena was struggling just as much as she was.

The skilled scientist glanced behind her, "Geez! What the hell is going on back there?" She gave a slight shrug. "Oh well, whatever it is, your friends are probably going to be killed by it."

"I wouldn't be so sure." Blake replied evenly.

Gena smirked, "Faith in your friends huh? That's admirable." This time she flung both chakrams simultaneously at the faunus huntress. "And very stupid."

Blake leapt over the two chakrams and began to perform a front flip, by the time she had completed it, the chakrams had bounced off the wall behind her and returned to position themselves just outside of melee range on her flanks. Switching Gambol Shroud to pistol-form, she blasted the chakram on her left out of the air and dashed towards her opponent, trailing bullets from the second chakram in her wake.

Gena extended her left hand and Blake heard the chakram stop firing. The disguised faunus knew that the chakram was right behind her and she picked up speed. When she was half a meter from the skilled scientist's left hand she leapt over her, hoping the chakram trailing her would run into it's owner.

"Pathetic." She heard Gena say, seeing through her plan, with impressive reflexes, she grabbed the chakram, just centimeters away from her throat, with her right hand. No doubt she was about to make another snide remark.

But then she saw Blake's second plan.

Trailing behind the faunus huntress was the sickle-form of Gambol Shroud, the dangerous end a mere quarter of a meter from Gena's eyes. She heard the scientist inhale sharply, and then pulled the sickle back towards her. Blake saw something fly off Gena's face and her opponent collapsed onto her back and lay still. The faunus huntress landed smoothly on her feet, turning to face the downed scientist and letting out a sigh of relief.

She had won.

Which was why she was so surprised when she suddenly found herself flying backwards as one of the chakrams shot her. Blake's aura absorbed most of the impact, but the chakram kept firing, pinning her against the wall with a barrage of bullets. Thankfully, her aura shield protected her from the most of it, but it still hurt and it drained the shield considerably. Finally, the chakram stopped and Blake collapsed from the wall onto her knees, breathing heavily.

The faunus huntress was confused. Gena was down, how in the heck were her weapons still working? She got her answer as the scientist suddenly rose up from her supine position, turning to face her. That was when Blake realized the goggles were no longer on Gena's face.

"Close one." The skilled scientist admitted. "But just a second too slow. That right there was your best chance to get me and what you just experienced from my weapons is only the beginning." Blake glared silently at her opponent who grinned, "Ready to become my guinea pig yet?"

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Weiss could only watch as Richter Bremen continued his desperate battle with Darion Shiver the monster. The heiress' aura was rapidly helping her recover from her recent torture, but she needed more time if she was going to be of any use. Time it seemed, was not on their side.

She watched as Richter attempted to keep his distance from Darion's winged form, either dashing in for a quick slash with his sword or hanging back and circling the transformed terrorist leader with his pistol. None of Richter's shots seemed to be breaking through Darion's tainted aura, in fact it only seemed to make the psychopath even angrier. Darion's attacks were leaving their mark all over the room and Weiss was beginning to doubt the structural integrity of it.

The sound of Richter's boots hitting the ground drew Weiss' attention as he landed a decent distance in front of her and slightly to her left. He took aim with his pistol and fired multiple times at Darion, who blocked the small arms fire with his left wing. The psychopath then flapped the wing, creating a powerful wave of air that sent Richter spine-first into the wall to the left of her like a lightning bolt. As he began to slide down he was pinned to the wall again by Darion's scaly left hand wrapped around his neck.

"I should have broke you in half when I had the chance!" Darion roared in his distorted voice. "You're a soft pile of shit who can't handle the tough stuff!"

Richter was trying to loosen the psychopath's grip on his throat with his left hand and failing miserably. "Torturing people doesn't make you tough." The short swordsman replied. With the swiftness of a viper, Richter pulled up his gun in his right hand and fired a beachball-sized blast point-blank into Darion's face.

It was the first time Weiss had seen the psycho flinch. Darion grunted pain from the shot, but quickly recovered, sending Richter through the wall with a punch to his chest. He turned towards Weiss then, eyes full of hate, she gripped Myrtenaster a little tighter in her hands.

A scream full of anger sounded from the hole Richter had just made, causing Darion to pause and look back in that direction. The psychopath raised his sword horizontally and a fraction of a second later Ruby's friend crashed into it with his own sword like a meteor. The shockwave from the impact of the two swords sent the smaller debris around the room flying and Weiss was forced to use her arms to protect her face from it. When the shockwave expired, she was astonished to see that Richter had not budged Darion an inch, the psychopath had taken the hit like it was nothing. It did not bode well for them.

Richter vaulted over Darion, who took a swing at Ruby's friend while he was above him. The giant blade missing Richter by inches. The short swordsman landed, bent his knees and charged right back into the fray, assaulting the transformed psychopath with a rapid combination of vertical, diagonal and horizontal slashes. Darion blocked them all and delivered a vicious upwards diagonal swing that cut Richter across his chest form right hip to left collarbone, or it would have if not for the saving grace of his aura. The short swordsman flew backwards, bouncing off the ground once before landing on his stomach. He lay there, not moving.

"You're right, torturing people doesn't make you tough." Darion said, continuing their previous conversation. "Power does."

Weiss was starting to get some strength back into her legs. She just needed Richter to last a little longer and she could join the battle. But the short swordsman was completely still, that last hit he took was a major one, it might have taken him out.

Not wasting any time, Darion crouched and with a flap of his bat-like wings, flew up to the room's ceiling where he repositioned himself to land there on his feet. Now upside-down, the psychopath springboarded from the ceiling, his giant sword pointed right at Richter's back as he descended rapidly. Weiss winced as she watched, this was not going to be pretty….

Suddenly, Richter pushed off from the ground, throwing himself into the air and narrowly avoided being impaled by Darion's sword as cracks spidered across the ground where he impacted. A surprised Weiss watched as Richter shifted his sword into a pistol and generated a ball of black-white aura as large as his small frame was, then fired it at Darion's head. The aura ball smashed into the left side of the psychopath's head and actually staggered him backwards, his right hand lost it's grip on his sword's handle, leaving him unarmed.

Richter fired his pistol behind him, using the recoil to dive downwards and nail Darion with a kick to his sternum. The transformed psychopath was knocked back another step and Richter shifted his pistol back to a sword. The short swordsman hit the transformed psychopath with a trio of slashes across his chest before bringing his blade up in an upward swing, intending to cut Darion in half.

Except Darion took a step back and caught Richter's blade with his left hand.

The short swordsman tried to free his blade, but Darion kept it firmly in his grasp. Weiss winced as she saw the transformed psychopath slam his right fist into the left side of Richter's head in a fierce overhand swing, flooring him instantly. Still, to Weiss' amazement, Richter was struggling to his feet, but he was having more trouble now, only able to make it to his hands and knees.

"You can't win this Richter." Darion told his opponent. "Do you know why? Because I have more power than you!" And with that, the transformed psychopath dropkicked Ruby's friend on the left side of his ribcage. Richter flew backwards, crashing into the wall behind him with his spine. He fell back to the ground on his right side, groaning in pain. Darion advanced towards him, retrieving his sword in the process, the promise of murder was in the psychopath's eyes.

Weiss took in the situation, her aura had finally restored her mobility. Darion was determined to see Richter dead it looked like, which meant that if she was fast enough, she could run by the psychopath to the room's exit straight across from her. However, if she did that, she would be leaving Richter at Darion's mercy. Conflict arose in the heiress as she tried to decide what to do. Darion would have killed her if not for Richter, but at the same time, Richter was the one who had captured her to be tortured in the first place.

Her mind made up, Weiss dashed forward, straight towards her goal.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Richter tried to get back to his feet, but his chest was on fire. The only reason his ribs probably weren't shattered was his aura shield, which was all, but gone now. If Darion continued his assault it wasn't going to be pretty.

He could only watch as the bastard stalked towards him, his giant butcher's knife of a sword gripped tightly in his right hand, ready to end his life. Richter did his best to compartmentalize all the pain he was in, but he wouldn't be able to recover in time. He took some solace in the fact that he at least went down fighting.

The sound of ice forming suddenly filled the short ex-huntsman's ears as Darion's right leg suddenly became encased in a jagged piece of ice. Both Richter and Darion were in complete shock as they looked towards the culprit.

Weiss Schnee was in a crouched position, her rapier was in her left hand in a reverse grip, the tip of the blade stapped into the top of Darion's right foot. She was breathing heavily, no doubt still not one hundred percent, but it was enough for her to have bailed Richter out of his current predicament.

Darion glared at her, eyes blazing, "You little bitch!" He pointed the tip of his sword at Weiss' face and her eyes widened as she spotted the gun barrel there. Richter realized with great alarm that she wasn't going to be able to dodge the shot.

Adrenaline surging through his veins, Richter lunged forward as hard as he could, grabbing Weiss Schnee around the waist with his right hand and pulling her away from Darion a split-second before he emptied a bullet into her right eye. He landed in a crouching position on the wall across from his last position, gathered his aura, and leapt towards the exit to the large room they were in. Dyrnwyn gripped in his left hand, he shifted the weapon to pistol form and fired behind him, using the recoil to boost his speed. They landed right in front of the exit and he released Weiss Schnee from his grip. He didn't need to tell her to run as they both took off down the exit corridor.

"Thanks." He said to her.

"Don't thank me yet, we just need each other to escape from tall, dark and scary back there." Came her reply.

"I'll take it." He responded. The duo could hear the angry shouts of Darion behind them, spurring them to move faster. Richter pulled out his scroll, hastily bringing up the map of the sewers. If they kept going on their current course, kept taking the tunnels that led up, then they would eventually end up at a secret exit outside of Vale's eastern wall. From there, they might have a shot of losing Darion in the forest, but it was a long shot, still better than nothing though.

"Do you have any idea where you're going?" Weiss Schnee asked him.

"If we keep going up there's a secret exit just outside of Vale's walls." He informed her.

"How far?" She asked.

"About a kilometer." Richter answered.

The corridor suddenly shook and several small pieces of debris fell from it's ceiling. Richter had to sidestep several chunks of concrete the size of his fist as they continued running.

"Damn, this place is starting to come down I think." Richter said.

"And whose fault is that Mr. I'm-going-to-blow-holes-in-the-ceiling?" Weiss Schnee harshly inquired.

"I was trying to deter pursuit." He defended.

"You slit a maniacal monster's throat, pretty sure deterring pursuit is fruitless at that point."

Richter shrugged, "It was worth a try at least."

They continued in silence, whenever the corridor forked, they would take the passage that led higher. At some point Richter and Weiss noticed that they couldn't hear Darion's angry screams anymore. Richter highly doubted the maniac had given up, he must have something up his sleeve.

Finally, The short ex-huntsman spotted the welcome sight of metal rungs in the side of the corridor they were currently in. "This is the exit." He told the Schnee as he began climbing up the metal rungs. Opening the manhole cover, Richter stepped out of the hole and breathed in the fresh air, the large looming sight of Vale's eastern wall at his back. The shattered moon was out in full force, casting it's silver light across the forest that stood before him. Richter was joined by Weiss shortly after and the two found a nearby tree. Richter immediately walked over and leaned his back on it. The heiress took a sitting position next to him, hugging her knees. It was a much-needed breather for them.

"Ruby and the others are probably coming to get me." Weiss spoke after a full minute of silence.

"They're back the way we came, kind of difficult to circle back now." He informed her.

A frown crossed the heiress' lips, "So we're on our own…."

"Yup." He confirmed. "But at least right now we got a few minutes to rest." He paused for a moment before looking at her. "Don't suppose you'd still want to give me the Sirensong's password?"

"Not unless you're ready to give me your hideout's location." She responded evenly.

"Touche'"

"So how does a friend of Ruby's end up with a psychotic former terrorist leader?" Weiss Schnee suddenly asked.

Richter sighed, "It was an alliance born of necessity."

"What did you need Darion for?"

"He knew how to get the Sirensong, we both needed it, but for different reasons."

Weiss Schnee eyed him suspiciously, "What do you need the Sirensong for?"

"To end the hunger." He answered, closing his eyes.

"The hunger?"

"Both Darion and I were experimented on. The result was the forms you have seen us use, our altered forms. However, the power comes at a price and that price is the hunger for grimm, we have to eat them to keep functioning."

The heiress looked like she was going to throw up. "So you have to eat grimm to survive?"

He nodded, reopening his eyes. "If we don't, the pain from the hunger is beyond excruciating, it's a terrible experience, one that I want to be rid of."

"But how will eating a horde of grimm help you? Wouldn't you get full?"

Richter shook his head, "No, it would make us more powerful, with that many grimm, we would transform into a stronger being. A being strong enough to overcome the hunger."

"At what price though?" Weiss demanded. "Grimm weren't meant to be eaten. If you consumed that many of them, what would really happen to you?"

He looked away from her, "I don't know. But if I don't have to deal with this damned hunger anymore I'm willing to risk it."

"At the cost of innocent lives?" She asked pointedly.

"I'm not a huntsman anymore." Richter stated with some venom, "Besides there is no village near our hideout, no innocent people are in danger."

"For now." Weiss said, "But do you honestly think someone like Darion Shiver is going to stop with just one use of the Sirensong? If he gets all that power, who do you think will be the first to feel his wrath? Can you really turn a blind eye to that?"

Richter didn't have an answer for the heiress. He knew the thing he wanted most right now was to end the hunger once and for all. However, the closer he got to his goal the more reluctant he felt to complete it. He was torn between two worlds and he wasn't sure which one he belonged to anymore. Before he could reply, something erupted from the ground in the distance.

Something big.

"YOU CAN'T ESCAPE ME!" Darion bellowed in his distorted voice. Flying high, about one hundred meters from their position was the transformed psychopath.

Richter felt his heart sink, "I thought we would have more time…." He had wanted to rest up then hide in the forest, but he had miscalculated.

Weiss Schnee sighed as stood to her feet, dusting herself off as best as she could. "Well, that's just been my luck today. At least this way I can die fighting."

He stood at her left side, focusing on Darion. "For the record, I have to say fighting alongside you isn't such a bad way to go out."

She gave him a cocky smirk, "Of course not, I'm a Schnee."

There was no more time to talk as Darion stretched his wings and flew towards them at breakneck speed. Richter reacted quickly, grabbing Weiss' left bicep and leaping to his left out of harm's way. He looked behind him to see Darion streak by, several trees falling over in his wake as he landed. Weiss extended her right hand, firing off several missile-like blasts of aura that all converged on their enemy's back. They heard Darion grunt in pain as their feet touched solid ground again.

The altered psychopath took off towards them again, this time he was hovering slightly above the ground. Richter raced forward to meet him, Dyrnwyn in sword-form. The short ex-huntsman racked his mind for strategies to use, everything he did before did not work against Darion. He did have better control over his semblance though, maybe he could try something new. It couldn't hurt at this point.

As the two combatants neared each other, Richter suddenly slashed into the ground with his sword instead of Darion. The psychopath quickly tried to capitalize, attempting to bury his right fist into the top of Richter's skull. The short ex-huntsman leapt to his right at the last second however, leaving behind his present.

Darion's last attack had put him right under the slash Richter had made. The psychopath's jade-green eyes suddenly widened as he caught sight of the slashed ground starting to glow. He was then knocked upwards by an explosive blast. Richter smirked at the sight, so he could make impromptu land mines. That was good to know.

The short ex-huntsman used his aura to boost his jump, positioning himself right above Darion in mid-air. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Weiss readying her weapon. They were working together without even talking, he hadn't had this kind of teamwork since Ruby.

Executing a powerful diagonal slash, Richter cut across the length of Darion's spine. Although the psychopath's aura absorbed the hit, the force of the blow sent him rocketing back to the dirt face-first, where he bounced off the ground. While still in mid-air from the bounce, Weiss charged in with her rapier, stabbing him right between the eyes. The attack sent him flying backwards, where he bounced off the ground twice before managing to get his legs underneath him. Still, his momentum continued to carry him backwards as he slid across the grass and dirt.

Sensing they were actually at an advantage, Richter and Weiss dashed towards the reeling Darion. If they could continue to keep him off-balance they might have a chance. Their opponent growled at them and stabbed his sword into the ground, quickly killing all his momentum. He then brought the blade back up and faced it's tip towards them. The blade began glowing green and Richter narrowed his eyes, that didn't look good.

Darion fired his blade and a thick cone of jade-green aura blasted from the barrel, uprooting large chunks of the ground before him. Richter could do little but hold his blade in front of him as a makeshift shield and hope his aura soaked most of the blast. The short ex-huntsman's vision was filled with green as the blast washed over him.

It felt like he had just got punched by a hundred Atlesian Paladins simultaneously. As the green faded out of his vision, Richter was dimly aware that he was floating in mid-air now. He spotted Weiss out of the corner of his eye to his left in a similar position, her eyes shut tight and her teeth clenched in pain. Movement in the air caught the short ex-huntsman's attention and he dully looked back forward to see Darion right in front of him, the psychopath's left leg reared back.

The kick landed on Richter's right arm and it knocked him right into Weiss. They collided hard in mid-air and Richter felt both the left side of his skull and his left hip flare up in pain. He tumbled end over end, no longer sure where he was in the air exactly. Once again, Darion appeared before him, this time the psychopath's right arm was reared back, he brought it forward in a powerful punch that connected solidly with Richter's face, right under his left eye. The short ex-huntsman found himself falling once more, he then felt his back connect with the ground, pain shooting through his entire body, even to his extremities.

Then everything went black.

When he came back to, Richter found himself lying in a crater. The sounds of battle still filled his ears and he looked to his left to see Weiss desperately trying to hold Darion at bay with aura blasts from her glyphs. He must not have been out for very long.

Richter went to stand up and was immediately met with a wave of pain, it hurt to move anything, even a finger. He could only lie there and watch helplessly as Weiss tried to conjure another glyph only for Darion to swoop down on his wings and ram his shoulder into her chest. The impact sent the heiress through a tree and she bounced a few times on the ground before rolling to a stop, unmoving. Darion took to the skies again, positioning himself above Weiss' downed form and aiming the gun barrel of his sword at her.

Richter cursed and tried to rise again, but it was no use, his body didn't want to respond. He was powerless to intervene.

And then a shot rang out, a very familiar report of a sniper rifle. Darion jerked awkwardly in the air, as if hit in the head by something. Richter heard several more reports from the rifle and the transformed psychopath was knocked away from his position right above Weiss, though he still kept himself in the air.

That only lasted for a second though as the familiar blonde hair of Yang Xiao Long streaked across the sky, making a beeline right for Darion. She planted her right fist into the gut of the psychopath and fired point-blank. Darion rocketed towards the ground, crashing hard and shooting up all sorts of debris in the air.

Richter weakly looked in front of him to see a red cloak drop in and coalesce into the familiar form of Ruby Rose. She looked at him stoically with her silver eyes, Crescent Rose embedded into the ground and gripped firmly in her right hand. Her red cloak billowed in the wind and in the light of the shattered moon, she looked less like a petite girl and more like the grim reaper clad in scarlet.

"You're in bad shape Richter." She said to him.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **Next Chapter: The conclusion for Blake vs. Gena, also the rest of Team RWBY vs. Darion Shiver**

 **A/N: The conclusion to the story is on the horizon, probably a few more chapters. I hope it's been an enjoyable read for you all.**


	10. Shattered Worlds 10

**A/N: Thanks 7Artemis7 for another review, besides those and the follows/favorites. I'm in the dark on whether people are enjoying this little tale or not. Good to see you are. Also thanks again to the people who have followed and favorited, I hope the fic continues to be entertaining!  
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 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Thirteen months ago_

 _Richter stepped out of the double doors that marked the theater's exit, Ruby close behind. They were busy laughing and talking about the things they had seen in the latest John Woodland movie. Pearce and Trista had other plans for the night, and Ruby didn't want to see the movie alone, so Richter had volunteered to go with her. It was a decent movie, he had actually laughed a lot more than he thought he would with it._

 _"But seriously." Ruby continued, "I would love a shotgun with a silencer on it! Then I could go all ninja and stuff." She stopped to look at him. "Do you think I'd make a good ninja?"_

 _"You would make a great ninja." Richter agreed, Ruby beamed at the praise and he gave her a mischievous smirk, "Mostly because grimm wouldn't be able to see you with your height. They'd be looking over you ninety percent of the time."_

 _He felt her punch his left shoulder playfully, a pout on her lips, "You aren't much taller than me!" She complained._

 _"True." Richter said, rubbing his chin, "Maybe that's why I'm so good at catching grimm unawares." He turned towards his petite friend. "Hey, did you see John Woodland's hair? What was that?"_

 _Ruby chuckled, "I know, it was so stupid looking!"_

 _"It looked like he replaced his hair with a bowl of ramen noodles." He said, Ruby had a real good laugh with that one and he continued, "I half-expected some random person to just start sprinkling spices on top of his head." Richter couldn't keep a straight face anymore and he joined Ruby in a round of laughter._

 _The two continued to discuss the movie as they began their walk back to Signal. They grabbed a bite to eat along the way, getting some strawberry milkshakes for dessert. By the time they had left the restaurant, it was approaching midnight. Richter looked at the night sky, the star-filled canvas looking serene. Days like these were what living was all about. Which he wouldn't be if Ruby's dad ever found out she was out so late. Taiyang could never know._

 _"Richter…" Ruby suddenly said, her tone was quieter, unsure, and it pulled Richter from his thoughts instantly. "We'll…we'll always be friends right?" She asked, her gaze on the straw of her milkshake as she fiddled with it._

 _His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "I don't see why not." He answered her. "What brought this on?"_

 _She switched her gaze to the path they were walking on. "It's just that….after Signal and Beacon, we'll be full-fledged hunters going off on our own missions. We'll be separated by thousands of miles." Her gaze switched to her feet, "I don't want that to cause us to drift apart."_

 _Richter gave her a gentle smile, "Ruby, there's always the CCT if we want to contact each other, plus even as full-fledged hunters we can still do missions together."_

 _"But not every mission!" Ruby argued, "And most missions are going to put us in rural areas where there is no CCT tower."_

 _He placed a calming hand on her shoulder, "We still have three more years at Signal then four more at Beacon. We've got seven years of quality time to spend together. Not to mention you'll be making new friends along the way."_

 _Ruby rolled her eyes, "Yeah right…"_

 _"You will." Richter reaffirmed, taking his hand off her shoulder. "You're a great person Ruby, once they see the real you, you'll be swimming in friends!" He grinned at her, "Why I bet you'll barely have time to see me and I'll spend my days all alone in my room, tears trickling down my cheeks as I watch old Spruce Willis movies." He joked._

 _Ruby giggled in response, "Okay, okay I get it."_

 _Richter's smile transitioned from joking to genuine. "You were my first friend in Patch, Ruby. No amount of time or distance is going to change that alright? I plan on us being friends for a very long time."_

 _"Me too." She agreed, smirking mischievously, "Because somebody needs to save you from those old Spruce Willis movies."_

 _"My hero."_

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present day_

Ruby loomed at the lip of the crater Richter was lying in, keeping a close eye on her old friend. There were numerous small tears in his grey cloak and a nasty bruise under his left eye. He was also moving gingerly, no doubt from the major hits he had taken so far. Several bangs of his dark hair were down, reaching just below his eyebrows, it gave him a more messy appearance. One that she wouldn't necessarily disagree with, under normal circumstances.

But these were far beyond normal circumstances.

"Having some trouble with your new friends?" She asked him, her tone neutral.

Richter inhaled a breath through clenched teeth. "They're not my friends."

"Could have fooled me." She replied. "Is this the kind of group you want to be with?"

He gave a small laugh in response. "Us monsters have to stick together." He joked.

Ruby was not amused, her silver eyes narrowed, "When are you going to stop lying to yourself?"

"What?"

Swiftly, Ruby jumped down into the crater to land at Richter's right side, shifting Crescent Rose back into carry-form and placing it in it's holster on her back. She knelt down, grabbed Richter by his shirt collar with both hands and pulled him up to a sitting position.

She scowled deeply at her old friend. "You almost fooled me!" She exclaimed, "You almost had me believe that you really had become a monster!" She shook him once, "But your eyes don't lie Richter, they aren't a monster's eyes!"

Richter glared right back at her, "That doesn't change the fact that I can't be who you want me to be anymore!"

"Liar!" She shouted at him, slamming him into the ground before pulling him back. "You said we would be friends for a very long time remember!? You can't go back on your word!" Ruby could feel angry tears forming in her eyes, but she stubbornly blinked them away, she would not cry, not in front of him. She noticed that Richter was no longer glaring, instead he was regarding her with a neutral expression.

The sound of a pair of footsteps landing at the crater's lip to her right filled Ruby's ears. She glanced over to see Yang and Weiss standing there. Weiss looked like she had been through some rough times, her clothes were dirty and ripped in several places and she was leaning slightly on Myrtenaster. However, her face said she was still ready for battle and Ruby didn't doubt her.

"Uh guys?" Yang said, pointing a thumb behind her. "That thing is coming back this way."

"It's Darion Shiver." Weiss informed them, turning to face the threat. "He transformed just like Richter did."

Ruby turned back to Richter, "I'll finish with you later." She said pointedly, releasing his shirt from her grip and standing up. "After we take care of this guy." With one quick leap, she joined Yang and Weiss at the lip of the crater, Weiss on her left and her sister on her right.

Just over a hundred meters from her position was their enemy, Darion Shiver. To Ruby, he looked like a gargoyle more than a man with the wings and ebony-colored scales on his body. The eyes, though similar to Richter's when he had transformed held no sadness or regret, only rage and hatred. Darion suddenly flapped his wings and flew towards her and her team, staying low to the ground. Ruby's eyes narrowed, his jade eyes were scary, but how well could they see?

"Freezer Burn!" Ruby called out, using a recoil shot to leap away. Gripping her weapon in a reverse grip with both hands, Weiss stabbed it into the ground, creating an ice puddle. Meanwhile, Yang leapt above the ice puddle and descended, slamming her fist into it and sending a thick mist through the entire battlefield.

Ruby and her team darted all around Darion, gauging how well he could see in the mist. Judging by his rapid twisting and turning as he heard their footsteps, not very well. Good, now she had to strike before he thought to fly above the mist. Planting her feet, the red-cloaked girl dashed forward with a burst of speed, she swung Crescent Rose horizontally from right to left, catching Darion right on the jaw with the slash just as he was about to fly away.

The slash knocked Darion off his feet, sending him backwards with his body parallel to the ground. Yang ran up behind him and delivered a powerful uppercut with her right hand, hitting the transformed psychopath right between his shoulder blades and knocking him high into the air. A full second after Yang's attack, Weiss crashed down on Darion from above him, the tip of her rapier hitting him right in the center of his sternum. They both slammed back down on the ground hard, with Darion taking all of the impact with his spine. The heiress quickly leapt away once they had landed, leaving the psychopath lying in a supine position. Ruby smirked at the situation, good, they had blindsided him, now they just had to finish it.

Dashing towards his head, Ruby attempted to bury her scythe into Darion's forehead, but the psychopath kickflipped himself up at the last possible moment. She had no time to react as he braced himself on the ground with his left hand and brought one of his boots around to slam into the left side of her head.

Ruby's vision doubled as she was knocked off her feet, sliding on the ground on her right flank. The red-cloaked girl failed to remember ever getting kicked that hard in her head, ever. She watched in a daze as Yang blitzed Darion's right flank, hammering at him with a flurry of shell-infused punches. Darion blocked them all with his right wing and sent her sister flying with a powerful buffet of wind from said wing.

Weiss appeared in mid-air, above and behind the psychopath's back. The heiress gestured with her right hand and two glyphs appeared in front of her, each firing a dozen fist-sized aura blasts. As they flew towards him, Darion raised his sword, pointing the tip at the blasts and firing twice. Two explosions appeared in the space between Weiss and him, quickly followed by multiple smaller explosions as the psychopath's shots set off a chain reaction on the heiress' blasts. Darion fired a third time and Ruby watched helplessly as it exploded right on top of her partner, who fell from the sky with a thin trail of smoke emitting from her body.

Darion then turned back towards Ruby, grinning like a madman. Ruby went to stand, but her equilibrium was still messed up, managing only a sitting position. She held her head with her right hand, if only the blasted floor would stop moving!

The winged psychopath flew towards Ruby, sword poised to strike when a black blur landed on his back. Darion ate a faceful of dirt as he slid across the ground, sliding right past the red-cloaked girl. The blur then leapt from the psychopath's back, landing on her left side. Ruby was not surprised to see that it was Richter. He was currently on his knees, taking a breather from his recent exertion.

"You saved me." She stated.

She saw his lips and eyes twitch for a moment, temporarily breaking his poker face. "Don't read too much into it." He replied quickly, "We're going to need all of us to beat him."

Ruby turned around so that she was facing where Darion had crashed, Richter now on her right side, a knowing smirk on her face. More and more the Richter of old was showing himself, if she kept pestering him, she might be able to get her old friend back completely.

"Whatever you say." She said to him, planting her scythe into the ground and taking aim at the recovering Darion with her sniper rifle. Richter shifted Dyrnwyn to pistol-form and followed suit. Standing back-to-back with her.

Ruby almost felt like they were back in Signal again.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Blake stumbled back a step as she took another hit to the jaw. The faunus huntress was still reeling from the fact that she had not beaten Gena earlier. Now she was completely on the defensive, only able to react to the skilled scientist's attacks.

Blake doubled over as she was kicked hard in the abdomen, sliding backwards a few meters and falling to her knees. The faunus huntress growled in frustration, she was better than this, Adam had saw to it. Gena closed the distance between them and brought her right boot up. Blake created a shadow clone to take the boot to the chin just in time, leaping slightly behind her clone and to the right. She raced towards the skilled scientist, who threw the chakram in her left hand. The faunus huntress' eyes narrowed, there was no way to completely dodge it. She was too close, but being cautious hadn't been working so far.

Blake leaned to her left as much as she could, a line of fire erupted on her right cheek as the chakram sliced into her there. Now in melee range, the faunus huntress tried an overhead strike with the sheathe in her left hand, which was hastily blocked by the chakram in Gena's right hand. Swiftly shifting Gambol Shroud to pistol-form, Blake performed a fierce uppercut right into her opponent's abdomen. As soon as the barrel made contact with Gena's stomach, Blake pulled the trigger several times, each shot sending the skilled scientist further and further into the air until she was almost touching the ceiling.

Not missing a beat, Blake shifted Gambol Shroud to sickle form, wrapping the ribbon around Gena's waist several times. Pulling hard on the ribbon, Blake brought her opponent down at a rapid descent, dropping the skilled scientist's chin right onto her waiting right knee. The blow was so strong it sent Gena tumbling backwards, the ribbon of Blake's weapon unraveling from her waist as she fell to the ground. Gena tumbled across the floor for a meter or two before managing to get to a crouching position, where she spat out a bloody tooth and glared daggers at Blake.

"Okay, now I'm mad." The skilled scientist declared.

Gena threw both her chakrams this time. Seeing an opening between the circular weapons, Blake dodged in-between them. The sound of electricity crackling drew the faunus huntress' attention and she was wondering where it came from for a moment before her whole body seized up as she was electrocuted. A scream of agony escaped from Blake's lips as the electricity emitted from the chakrams' gun barrels stopped. The circular weapons recoil shot themselves back into her opponent's hands, who was smiling with glee.

"How about a little shock therapy to spice things up!" Gena announced, tossing her weapons at Blake again. This time, the faunus huntress saw the tether of electricity that was traveling between the two chakrams. Whatever her next move was, she had to make sure she didn't get stuck between the two circular weapons again, she couldn't take too many more electrocutions.

The two chakrams used recoil shots to boost themselves towards Blake again. This time, she was ready for them though, creating a shadow clone to take the hit. The electric tether fizzled out as it made contact with her clone and Blake shifted her weapon into sickle-form, firing it at Gena. However, before the sickle could reach her opponent, the two chakrams repositioned themselves, this time between the ribbon that connected to her sickle. Electricity began to crackle on the circular weapons and Blake saw what Gena was intending to do.

Releasing her grip on the ribbon, the faunus huntress barely spared herself from another electrocution as the chakrams zapped it. Blake tried to create some distance by leaping backwards, but the chakrams began increasing their distance from each other, lengthening the electric tether between them. The circular weapons then began spinning rapidly, creating a rotating electric tether that was moving towards her at a quick pace. The faunus huntress bit her lip, the electric tether was too long to try and run around, there was nowhere to go, but through it.

Bending her knees, Blake concentrated on the tether in front of her, examining the speed of it's advance and rotation in less than a second. Choosing the right moment, she straightened her legs and leapt through the rotating electric tether, the electricity almost licking the bottoms of her boots. Her small victory was short-lived, as Gena came flying in with a devastating kick right to her forehead. Blake found herself sailing back the way she had come and then the electricity coursed through her body again, earning another scream of pain. This time the faunus huntress collapsed unceremoniously to the floor, landing in a prone position. She was dimly aware of her aura shield being completely gone now, if she took another electrocution unprotected, she was done for.

The chakrams recoil shot themselves back to Gena once more, who was laughing loudly as she caught them, "You should have seen the way your body was twitching!" The skilled scientist said. "That was hilarious!" Blake's only response was a groan of pain. Gena sneered at her, "So is that it? No more tricks up your sleeve?"

Blake racked her mind for a solution, she was going to lose at this rate. However she was at the limits of her tactics, maybe if Ruby was here she would have some kind of idea in how to deal with Gena, but she was not. Maybe she really was going to lose to a mad scientist in a sewer with a room that was dimly lit by one Dust lamp.

Wait, one dust lamp? Hope suddenly surged through Blake as an idea came to her, yes it might just work.

Rising to her knees, Blake fixed her opponent with a glare, "Just one." She said, replying to Gena's earlier taunting question. She threw the sheathe in her left hand at the ceiling, targeting the room's only Dust lamp, and shattered it. Instantly bathing the room in complete darkness. Well it would have been darkness for a human.

But she was a faunus, seeing in the dark was easy for her.

Gena snorted, "I don't see how killing the light is going to help. You'll be just as blind as I am." Blake smirked when she heard those words, she could turn this around.

Moving swiftly and stealthily, Blake retrieved her weapons, all the while Gena kept stumbling around, confused. Positioning herself so that she was behind the skilled scientist, Blake slashed her back with Gambol Shroud in sword-form. Gena immediately retaliated, swinging behind her with the chakram in her right hand, but Blake was already gone.

The faunus huntress waited for a few more moments, watching Gena look frantically around, trying desperately to find her. She then dashed forward and delivered a sidekick right to the back of the scientist's skull, causing Gena to stumble forward a bit. To her credit, the skilled scientist recovered quickly, leaping up and performing a half-flip so she was upside-down, firing shots from her chakrams at where she had been hit, but Blake was no longer there.

As soon as Gena landed back on her feet, Blake moved forward again. The faunus huntress kicked the back of the skilled scientist's left knee with her left boot, forcing her into a crouching position. Blake then slammed her right knee in-between her opponent's shoulder blades, causing her to arch back and expose her throat, which the faunus struck with the pommel of her sheathe, right in the adam's apple. Gena dropped the chakram in her left hand as she brought it up to hold her throat.

With her opponent's left flank exposed, Blake struck it with a diagonal slash from her sword. Gena's aura was still active and it protected her from being cut, it did not protect her from the force of the attack however. The skilled scientist was sent sailing through the air, landing hard on her right side. Gena was a little slow to get up, still nursing her sore throat.

"How!? How are you doing this!?" Gena howled, looking around frantically. Blake gripped Gambol Shroud tightly in her hands, it was time to finish it.

Blake came in at Gena's left, intentionally making enough noise for the scientist to hear. As the faunus huntress came within melee range, she created a clone a split-second before her opponent came forward with the chakram in her right hand, splitting the clone in two. However, this was not an ordinary clone. Blake saw Gena's eyes widen in panic as the two halves of the clone suddenly burst into flame, half a second later an explosion rocked the room as the fire clone detonated.

The faunus huntress watched stoically as Gena fell from the air, landing hard on her back. She calmly walked up to the downed scientist, undoing her bow and exposing her cat ears. With the lingering flames from the fire clone, Gena was able to see the ears and she sneered at Blake.

"A damned faunus….should have known…" The scientist managed to say before Blake kicked the side of her head, knocking her unconscious. The faunus huntress sheathed her weapons, looking for something to tie Gena up with.

This time she really had won.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby fired her sniper rifle multiple times, hearing the sound of Richter firing his pistol as well. The two were riddling Darion with enough firepower to maim a deathstalker, but Darion was taking it like a champ. While the red-cloaked girl would love to take the psychopath down and add another feat to her team's record, she was beginning to see that defeating Darion was going to be difficult.

Her opponent suddenly aimed the tip of his sword at the pair and fired a jade sphere-shaped aura blast at them. The blast was easily taller than Richter and her and it was steamrolling towards them at a fast pace. Undeterred, Ruby fired another round from her sniper rifle while Richter shot a torso-sized blast of black-white aura. The bullets and blasts all collided then detonated, at first Ruby thought it was a stalemate and was about to keep firing when she caught sight of a dozen or so basketball-sized clusters of aura dropping in from in front and above her.

Abandoning her position, Ruby sprinted to her left, hearing explosions behind her as the clusters made contact with something and detonated. Sparing a quick glance behind her, the red-cloaked girl saw Richter doing the same, but running the opposite direction as her.

The sound of Darion grunting in pain captured Ruby's attention and she looked back towards him to see Yang on his back. Her sister was gripping Darion's left wing, at the part where it attached to his left shoulder blade. She was landing some brutal hits on the back of the psychopath's head whenever she got stable footing. Darion was trying to buck her off like a wild horse, but Yang held firm, blasting him in the back of the head periodically with some big punches.

Finally having enough, Darion flapped his wings and sprung into the air. Yang held on for dear life and the transformed psychopath twisted himself so that his back was facing the ground. Ruby watched the color drain from her sister's face as she saw what was about to happen.

"Oh no….!" Yang exclaimed as Darion flapped his wings and rocketed back towards the ground, slamming Ruby's poor sister deep into the dirt and forming a small crater. The winged psychopath bounced back to his feet while Yang remained still, lying supine in the crater and groaning in pain.

However, Darion was dazed, shaking his head repeatedly to try and work some cobwebs out. Seeing this, Ruby dashed forward, rose petals in her wake as she approached her enemy from behind. She leapt up and landed several looping slashes on Darion's back, causing him to stumble forward a few steps. He tried to answer back with a sudden twist to face his attacker and a horizontal slash aimed at her tiny waist. Without missing a step, Ruby tucked her legs above Darion's swing, landed on the flat of his blade, used her weight to pin it to the ground and delivered a powerful horizontal swing to Darion's face. She actually pierced through his tainted aura shield, making a cut across his left cheek.

The transformed psychopath roared in pain and rage as Ruby back-flipped away, switching Crescent Rose to gun-form and firing three shots. Darion blocked them all with his sword and took two long strides forward, closing the distance between himself and the red-cloaked girl and delivering a vicious kick to her gut with his right foot. Pain exploded in Ruby's abdomen as she felt fingers wrap around her throat. A moment later she was slammed spine-first into the ground, Ruby couldn't even cry out in pain because of the hand gripped around her throat.

"Ruby Rose." Darion suddenly spoke, eyeing her curiously, "So you're the one that Richter has a hard-on for."

She gave him a silver-eyed glare in response, freeing her throat a little with her left hand. "Are you the one who changed him?"

Her answer was a smile full of teeth, a smile she wanted to rip off. "So what if I am?" He taunted.

Before she could answer, Darion lifted his sword with his right hand and fired a shot right at a charging Richter, who managed to deflect the shot with the flat of his blade, but it knocked him away regardless. Using the recoil from that shot, Darion slashed behind him, knocking away a surprised Weiss. The heiress barely able to get Myrtenaster into a position to take the brunt of the attack.

While he was fighting off her friends, Ruby was able to free herself from his grip. She quickly got to her feet and delivered an upwards vertical swing to Darion's chest. The red-cloaked girl followed it up with a spinning sidekick to the psychopath's sternum, knocking him back a step. Ruby then tried to bring her scythe down on top of his head, but Darion was able to bring up his sword to block it. The blade making contact near the top part of the scythe's handle. The resulting clash created a shockwave, blasting away small pieces of debris. Ruby grit her teeth in annoyance, this guy was really tough.

Using a recoil shot, Ruby backflipped away, landing to the right of a kneeling Richter a fair distance from the transformed psychopath. She cast a quick glance at her old friend, who had his sword embedded in the ground and was using that to keep his balance. The fact he was still fighting after taking a hit that created a crater the size of a bus was amazing. Yang and Weiss touched down to the right of her, weapons prepped for another round.

Darion stood to his full height, his inhuman eyes bloodshot as he breathed heavily, but not from exhaustion. If looks could kill, they would all be in the morgue now. Darion's angry gaze locked onto one person. The one wearing a grey cloak to Ruby's left.

"I hope you're fucking happy Richter!" He bellowed, "You've ruined everything!"

Richter showed no signs of intimidation, "You were the one who was going to kill the one person in Vale who had the information we needed." Came his reply, "Kind of puts a wrench in the plans don't you think?"

Darion gave Richter a look of disgust. "Look at you, acting all high and mighty now that you're back with all your little friends. But you and I both know it won't last." The psychopath fired a bullet into the ground, shooting up some debris. "Newsflash Richter! We're no longer human!" He held up his left hand, balling it into a fist. "We have achieved superior forms and you act like it's a curse! You don't have the balls to embrace this new power!" He spat at the ground. "If you would just fucking let go of all your little bonds and friendships you could be right there with me in godhood!" Ruby found herself frowning at Darion's last remark, this guy was a real jerk.

Richter gave a small laugh, "So I can threaten and murder people who had nothing to do with what happened to me? No thanks."

"Their lives are meaningless." Darion stated and Ruby felt her frown deepen. "They do nothing but sit around and wait for others to protect them. They contribute nothing in the god damned grand cycle of life!"

"No one's life is meaningless!" Ruby suddenly exclaimed, interrupting the conversation. She had heard enough from this crazy guy. "Those people have every right to exist! You don't get to decide whether they deserve to live or not."

Darion responded with an unsettling crazed smile, "Not yet."

Ruby remained firm, "Not ever." She stated, punctuating it by stabbing her scythe into the ground. "I'm stopping you right here, Darion Shiver."

There was a moment of silence, as if Remnant itself was holding it's breath in anticipation for the coming battle. Finally, it was broken as Darion planted his feet, preparing to charge. Ruby's team got into fighting stances and Richter pulled himself to his feet. Before anyone could make a move though, the sound of a scroll beeping could be heard. It was emanating from Richter and surprisingly, Darion.

Confused, Richter pulled out his scroll with his left hand, tapping the screen with his thumb. He stared at the information on the screen for a moment before paling.

"Shit…!" He cursed. Across the battlefield, Darion was having the opposite reaction.

"YES!" The psychopath cheered, looking at his own scroll.

Wanting to know what the big deal was, Ruby looked over Richter's shoulder, reading three words that sent a cold shiver of dread through her spine.

"Sirensong password acquired." The screen on Richter's scroll stated.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: I estimate this fic is going to be about 14 chapters give or take. Come February the updates will be less frequent as I'll have less free time, but I do still plan to finish this.**

 **Thank you for reading!**


	11. Shattered Worlds 11

**A/N: I've been skirting the AU aspect of this story, but starting from this chapter it begins to branch off in a different direction from the series. Hopefully, it is entertaining for you all.  
**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Ten months ago._

 _Richter fell to his knees, expelling more blood from his lungs onto the concrete floor. He opened his mouth wide, gulping in as much air as he could. His body shivered uncontrollably in a vain attempt to bring his temperature up, but it never warmed him up. He hadn't been warm in months, since the injections started._

 _He was in a rectangular room wide enough for two people to stand shoulder-to-shoulder and long enough for him to pace around aimlessly, trying to think of ways to escape the hell he was enduring. The walls and ceiling were made of solid metal, a single dim Dust lamp hung at the center of the ceiling, casting a very dim circle of light at the center of the room, leaving the edges in darkness. A heavily barred thick metal door sat mockingly in front of him, taunting him with the way to freedom that he knew was a lie. Behind him to his right sat a worn out cot and on the opposite wall a sink and toilet. One he had failed to get to during his latest vomiting spell, it had been too sudden._

 _To Richter's immediate left was a dead beowulf. The grimm had bite marks all over it's neck, his bite marks. For some reason ripping into the monster's flesh satiated him and once he started he couldn't stop until the beowulf lay unmoving. The terribly intense hunger that was so strong it was painful had begun to diminish. Relief washed over the boy, followed by dread and sickness. What had he done? What was he becoming?_

" _Enjoy your meal?" A sultry voice asked from the other side of the cell's door. Richter's eyes widened when he heard it. It was a voice he had come to hate in the past few months._

 _Roaring like a wild man, Richter charged the door, slamming all the weight his small frame could muster, but like many times before, it did nothing. Through a horizontal viewpoint in the thick door she could see Cinder Fall's hated amber eyes looking at him. He could almost picture the arrogant smirk he knew she had on her face._

" _I'll take that as a yes." She said. "You're the second one to survive this long. You should be proud."_

 _Richter wiped his chin with his left hand, it came away red with blood, "I'll be proud when I'm standing over your dead corpse!"_

 _Cinder was unmoved by his words. "You would murder the only person offering you safe harbor?"_

" _Safe harbor!?" Richter replied, incredulous. "You've been torturing me!" He scowled deeply at the amber-eyed woman. "When I get out of here, I'll inform the teachers at Signal about what you've done! They'll tear you to pieces!" He vowed._

 _Her response was a condescending chuckle. "I don't think that's going to work out the way you want."_

" _What?"_

" _Have you seen yourself lately?" Cinder asked, throwing a square object into the cell through the viewpoint. It slid to Richter's feet. "I've given you quite the makeover."_

 _Richter picked up the small square object, it was a mirror. He peered into it expecting to see his face, but what he saw was a demon. The left eye's sclera was black and the iris was glowing orange, his skin had peeled off the left side of his face, revealing skin as dark as the corners of his cell. Even his teeth were changing, becoming slightly more pointed. He was….a monster._

" _No…." He said in a whisper, despair crushing him._

" _I wonder." Cinder thought out loud. "Would the teachers at Signal actually listen to you with a face like that? Or would they just kill you on sight?"_

" _My friends…." He said quickly, desperately. "….They would listen to me."_

 _Cinder laughed cruelly in response. "You look like a living, breathing nightmare. They would run in fear at the first sight of you, wouldn't they?"_

 _She was right, she was right and he hated her for it. Ruby, Pearce, Trista…they would all be afraid of him. They would treat him like a grimm, a monster, and cut him down. The thought of Ruby's silver eyes looking at him in fear felt like a punch to the gut. The despair gripped him tighter, threatening to crush him._

" _You no longer have a place there." Cinder said, "This place is now your home. Enjoy your stay." And with that she closed the door's viewpoint, the sound of her shoes echoing in the halls beyond as she left Richter to his despair._

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present day._

Richter was perplexed as he stared at the words on his scroll's screen. How did they have the password already? They never got to finish scanning the rest of Weiss Schnee's mind!

"Looks like we already got what we needed from your brain little Schnee." Darion boasted, "Ms. Celvic's computer just had to sift through all the excess information to find it." With a flap of his wings, the psychopath took to the sky, seeking to fly over them.

"We can't let them escape!" Yang shouted.

Ruby nodded her acknowledgement, keeping her eyes on Darion. "Ice Flower!" She called out.

Richter watched as Weiss Schnee positioned herself to Ruby's left, creating a few glyphs in front of Ruby who had her sniper rifle aimed at Darion. She then fired five shots, the first two Darion managed to evade, but the final three hit their mark, covering his body in large irregular pieces of ice.

The winged psychopath began to lose altitude and Yang leapt up to meet him, right fist reared back for a massive punch. However, before she could get into melee range, Darion exerted himself, shattering the ice that held him with a burst of his tainted aura. The resulting shockwave threw Yang in the opposite direction and she plummeted back down to the ground.

Richter leapt into the sky, half a second before Yang crashed into the dirt. Activating his semblance, he struck out with his sword, catching Darion on the interior webbing of his right wing. The psychopath's aura protected the wing from being cut. However, the orange mark he had left on the wing suddenly glowed, by the time Richter landed, it exploded. Darion was unable to right himself as he unsteadily flew over the group and crashed into the ground about fifty yards away.

Ruby and Weiss were about to attack Darion as he struggled to his feet, when a sudden spotlight shined on them to their right. Looking in that direction, Richter spotted a bullhead aircraft, but it wasn't the ordinary models. This one had gatling guns and missile tubes underneath it's wings and they were pointed right at them.

"Hello!" A voice said over the bullhead's loudspeaker, Richter recognized that voice. Novus Procter, come to bail Darion out no doubt. The gatling guns on the aircraft began to whirr to life, "Goodbye!"

Richter cursed and took off in a sprint as bullets shredded the area he was at a second before. The sound of missiles zooming through the air reached his ears and he spurred himself to run faster. The ground began shaking violently as the missiles made contact. He could hear the explosions getting closer and in a last ditch effort to escape the onslaught he dove forward. The concussive force of a missile blast sent him tumbling through the air, the night sky and the ground trading time in his sight before he finally came down hard on his belly.

Sound became distorted for the ex-huntsman as he pushed his upper body off the ground. The loudest sound in his ears was an annoying ringing that refused to cease. With blurry vision, Richter looked around the battlefield, trying to locate Ruby and her friends.

He spotted Weiss Schnee dragging Ruby by her right arm towards his general direction. Ruby looked as dazed as he felt. Yang was on her hands and knees, shaking her head vigorously in an attempt to get the cobwebs out. It looked like everyone had survived.

Looking further back he spotted Darion standing tall, an arrogant smirk on his lips. "Blow the charges Novus." He ordered.

Novus positioned the bullhead above him, "You got it boss."

Richter was confused, charges? What charges?

He got his answer soon enough.

Several distant booms could be heard coming from the city. Richter looked in that direction to see multiple lazy trails of smoke floating up into the sky. Soon after, the sirens began. Richter winced, he didn't remember this part of the plan.

"Oh that's right, I forgot to brief you on this part of the mission Richter." Darion shouted, as if reading his mind. "In addition to Novus acquiring our getaway vehicle, he also planted a bunch of bombs in the city, mostly in populated areas. Got to keep that big bad Atlesian military distracted you know?"

"No…." Richter heard Ruby say softly. Looking on in shock and horror at the now-burning skyline of Vale within the walls. The short ex-huntsman snarled, there was a time for killing, but these deaths, there were people there that didn't deserve it, who were living their own lives. So this was the catch that he didn't see with Cinder Fall's deal. Yes with Darion's group he could stop the endless torment that was the hunger, but in doing so, he was allying himself with a madman. He turned to face Darion, fury building within his body.

Darion's smirk stayed on his face, but his eyes narrowed when he locked eyes with the short ex-huntsman. "You've got a nice look in your eyes now Richter. Eyes full of killing intent, I like that! There might be some hope for your sad ass yet!" Dropping to a crouching position, the winged psychopath suddenly leap upward, landing inside the bullhead through one of it's openings. "The next time you lay eyes on me, you'll be laying eyes on Remnant's new god!"

Richter could only watch helplessly as Novus turned the tail end of the bullhead towards him, getting ready to fly away. He caught a glimpse of Darion reverting to his human form, the skin around his face, arms and chest starting to regenerate. He would be fatigued for a while, but that didn't mean anything if he was ferried to the hideout via the bullhead. They had to ground that damned metal bird, but how?

"Yang! Richter!" Ruby suddenly called out, "Flamboree!"

Richter's jaw almost dropped to the ground, "What!?"

Yang was finally back to her feet, she looked at her sister tentatively, "Ruby, we haven't done that in over a…."

"Just do it!" Ruby interrupted, "Many more innocent people die if he gets away!"

The uncharacteristic seriousness in Ruby's voice spurred the two into action. Richter had seen it before, Ruby only showed the leader side of her when things went bad. The situation they were in certainly qualified. If Darion got away in that bullhead, there would be no one to stop him in time from activating the Sirensong.

Positioning himself in front of Yang, Richter switched Dyrnwyn to pistol-form, generating a large black-white ball of aura at the tip of the barrel. Unlike two years ago, he had no problem keeping it steady. As soon as the ball stopped expanding Yang leapt forward and punched the aura ball as hard as she could, compressing it almost into a disc shape and rocketing it towards the retreating bullhead aircraft. Yang's aim was true, nailing the bullhead on it's tail. Smoke and fire erupted from where the disc impacted and the bullhead began to rapidly descend, disappearing below the treetops. Richter nodded at the sight, that should buy them time at least.

Ruby turned to Weiss, her face serious. "I'm sorry Weiss, but we need backup. We have to inform Professor Ozpin."

Weiss Schnee nodded soberly, "I know." Ruby pulled out her scroll, but Weiss grabbed her wrist gently, preventing her from using it. "I'll do it, I'm to blame for this."

"So am I." Richter muttered to himself, he saw Ruby cast him a quick glance, so she had heard him. If his petite friend was going to say anything it was stopped as Yang walked up to her, the blonde huntress pocketing her scroll.

"Blake just contacted me, she's got Gena Celvic tied up and she's on her way." Yang reported.

Ruby nodded. "Good." She turned towards Richter. "We need you to lead us to that hideout. I think we can both agree letting Darion activate the Sirensong would be a bad thing."

"Yes." He replied, who would have thought that Darion Shiver would have been such a raging psychopath? Not him.

"Once Blake regroups with us, we'll move." Ruby announced, everyone took the next few minutes to rest up. Richter couldn't help, but admire his old friend for taking control of the situation so readily. She definitely had the blood of a huntress in her.

Eventually Blake, the amber-eyed huntress joined them. The second she laid eyes on Richter she almost shot him with her pistol. Thankfully, Ruby talked her down, but Blake still eyed him warily, he didn't blame her. Weiss finally got off her scroll, approaching the group once more.

"What did Professor Ozpin say?" Ruby asked.

"He said he'd send what hunters he could, most are responding to all the chaos in the city along with the Atlesian military." Weiss answered.

Yang slammed a fist into an open palm. "Then it's up to us."

Ruby nodded, "Let's not waste any more time." She looked at him. "Richter, lead the way."

The short ex-huntsman nodded and took off at a pace that was just below a full sprint, heading towards the trail of smoke deeper in the forest that signified Darion's crashed bullhead. If they were fast enough, they might be able to catch Darion and Novus while they were still recovering from the crash.

Ruby ran up to his left side, matching pace with him, "How much time do we have?"

"Darion won't be able to activate the Sirensong right away." Richter answered, "It takes twenty minutes for it to power up. We'll have more time than that though."

"Why's that?"

"He used his altered form. While it's very powerful, it's also very taxing on the body." He informed her. "He'll need to recover from that first before he uses the Sirensong."

"You're sure?" Weiss asked from behind him.

He spared the heiress a glance, "Positive. He needs to be in his altered form if he wants to consume that many grimm at a rapid rate. If we're lucky though, he'll have died in the aircraft crash."

"I somehow doubt that." Yang piped up

Richter sighed, "Yeah, me too. One can always hope though."

Ruby smirked at him, "Oh, so you're hoping again?"

His response was to growl in annoyance, but Ruby just kept smirking at him.

After a short time, the group came upon the crashed aircraft. The right wing had been ripped completely off, the tail was gone and the left wing was on fire. Pieces of metal debris littered the clearing, but Richter saw no sign of Darion or Novus.

"I don't see any bodies." He heard Blake say.

Weiss sighed, "I suppose it was too much to hope for."

Yang ran a hand through her hair, "What now?"

Richter felt Ruby's silver eyes on him, "How far to the hideout?"

"On foot? It's going to take us the rest of the night, we'll arrive about sunrise." He answered.

She walked past him, "We'd better get to it then."

The group continued through the forest, Richter slowed their pace down to a brisk walk, not wanting to unnecessarily fatigue himself or Ruby's group in the long journey ahead. The crash must have injured Darion and Novus, which meant they would be moving at a similar pace. Perhaps they could catch up to them.

Once again, Ruby appeared at his left side, "I'm sorry." She said to him.

Richter was thoroughly confused, "For what?"

She kept her gaze ahead, "I had no idea you were still alive after the manor incident. I thought you were….dead." She clarified, her eyes revealing the sadness she felt, "If I'd known, I would have come looking for you."

A sigh escaped the short ex-huntsman's lips, so that's what's eating at her, "Ruby, I don't blame you for what happened to me at the manor. I made that decision on my own. I don't regret it."

He saw her visibly relax, sparing him a tentative glance. "So how did you get….changed?"

Richter frowned, "A woman named Cinder Fall kept experimenting with me." He answered, "Every day for five months she injected me with some kind of black liquid." He winced at the memory, "The closest thing I can describe it to would be having magma injected directly into your veins, the pain was beyond imagining."

Ruby's silver eyes widened slightly, "Wait, her name was Cinder Fall?"

He made eye contact with her, "You've heard of that name?"

"She's a student visiting from Haven Academy." She informed him.

"That's no student." Richter snarled, "That is a cruel monster that delights in suffering." His gaze intensified on his red-cloaked friend, "You have a viper in your midst, after we finish here, I strongly suggest dealing with it." He spat.

"Richter…" She said softly, dimly aware that her eyes were full of concern, but the rage was welling up inside him.

The short ex-huntsman balled his hands into fists, "Cinder robbed me of my humanity, my pride, my hope. She basically took my world and shattered it, breaking me. And once she did, she picked up the pieces and made me an offer I couldn't refuse. All I had to do was help Darion Shiver and his group."

"What was the offer?" Ruby inquired.

Richter closed his eyes and shook his head, his hands relaxing, "It doesn't matter anymore."

Now that Darion and him had irreconcilable differences, his goal of ending the hunger permanently was gone, there would be no way Darion would let him near the Sirensong now. Which meant his days in the foreseeable future would be filled with agony and the bitter taste of grimm. The thought of it was almost enough to drive him mad.

They walked in silence for a few moments. Ruby casting a few awkward glances his way as they progressed through the forest. He knew she was trying to think of something to say, to ease the tension, but there was nothing he could do to help her out. He was just as hesitant to say something, after all he did hurt her friends, knocked her out and kidnapped her partner. Things like that tend to make conversation awkward.

"You know…." Ruby suddenly spoke, her hands nervously behind her back. "…Maybe someone at Beacon might be able to help you. Professor Ozpin's bound to know something about this or maybe General Ironwood has some Atlesian technology that could…"

Richter's eyebrows furrowed in anger, "Oh yes." He interrupted, "So I can be thrown into another lab to have more experiments run on me." He said irritably. "No thanks Ruby, I've had enough needles to last me a lifetime." He quickened his pace, increasing the distance from her. "I'm going to go scout ahead." And with that he leapt to one of the tree branches and took off, leaving a discouraged Ruby behind him.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Yang saw the entire exchange between Ruby and Richter. She joined her little sister after their old friend took off like a bat out of hell.

"Okay, that may have not been the best suggestion to make." Ruby said, rubbing the back of her head nervously.

Yang placed her right hand on her sister's left shoulder, "It's alright Ruby, Richter won't stay mad at you."

She looked at Yang. "Are you sure?"

The blonde huntress gave her baby sister a reassuring smile, "He's never been able to before." She released her grip on Ruby's shoulder, "I'll go talk to him."

"I'll go with you." Ruby quickly replied.

"No, it'd be better if you stay here for now, give him time to cool off." Yang said, she winked at her, "I won't be gone long." Breaking into a sprint, the blonde huntress raced to catch up with Richter.

She honestly wasn't sure what to think of their old friend at this point. They had a common enemy in Darion Shiver, but beyond that it was all a realm of uncertainty for her. If she had her way, she would have punched Richter's lights out for having hurt her little sister. However, watching Ruby's recent exchange with the short ex-huntsman pushed those thoughts out of her head. Ruby desperately wanted to bring Richter back into the fold and as her older sister, Yang had to at least try and make an effort to support that decision.

The blonde huntress caught up with the short ex-huntsman, who was currently perched in a high tree branch. Richter's eyes were squinted as he tried to see off into the distance, attempting to spot Darion or his henchman.

"See anything?" Yang asked him.

"Nothing at the moment." Came Richter's reply, a little edge in his tone. "They can't be too far ahead though. They're on foot just like us and Darion has to be feeling the aftereffects of his altered form."

She shrugged, "So things aren't going completely wrong."

"No."

"Hey." Yang said, running a hand through her hair, "Ruby didn't mean anything bad about suggesting you see Professor Ozpin or General Ironwood. She was just trying to help you."

"I know." Richter admitted, his tone softer. "But just the thought of being stuck in another lab is enough to get my blood boiling." He leapt down from the tree branch, landing a short distance in front of Yang with his back facing her.

"You know she mourned you for a long time." The blonde huntress informed him.

Richter continued to have his back towards her, looking straight into the forest. "Did she?"

"You've been friends since you were little kids, of course she did." Yang replied. "And I would go out on a limb and say you were becoming more than friends."

That got Richter's attention, he turned his head to look at her, a surprised expression on his face. "What?"

"I know my baby sister, I've seen the way she looks at you, even now during all of this." She continued, "She cares about you a lot Richter, a lot."

Richter's dark-brown orbs switched their gaze to the ground, a frown on his face. "What are you getting at?"

Yang took a deep breath, patience, she needed patience. "After we fought you in the city, I thought you were a lost cause. The next time I saw you I was going to cave your face in. But I could tell that Ruby was refusing to completely give up on you."

She saw his face soften slightly as she told him all this. So Ruby's gut instinct was right, the Richter they had known growing up was still in there, but how far was he buried? How much of him remained?

"I know you care for her too." Yang continued, "Which is why I'm staying my hand, for now."

Richter returned his attention to the forest ahead of him. "Even if I do, it doesn't change anything." He sounded bitter and tired. "I can't become a huntsman the way I am now and I can't walk a path of darkness like Darion." He looked down at his hands, "I'm lost Yang, I don't know where I belong anymore."

"Then come back to Vale with us when this is over." She urged. "I know Ruby would be happy if you did. Just think about it okay?"

He didn't respond, still staring at the ground. Most likely he was absorbing all of this. Turning around, Yang began to walk back to the others, leaving Richter to his thoughts. She stopped after half a dozen paces, there was still one more thing she had to say.

"Remember, the decisions you make don't just affect you, but the people you care about." The blonde huntress said, looking back at Richter, her eyes narrowed at his back. "If you break Ruby's heart, I'll break you." She finished, dead serious.

"I'm already broken." Richter responded. "Besides, I don't plan on hurting her anymore anyway."

Yang stared at him for a moment more, "I hope so." She said solemnly. There was nothing more to say as she went to regroup with her team.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

It was a long five hours before Ruby called for the team to make camp. There was a few hours before dawn and she wanted them to rest up. Richter had told her they would definitely reach the hideout before noon tomorrow.

Blake had found signs of people moving through the woods, one of them wounded. It was a relief to the red-cloaked girl, as that meant Darion didn't have a huge lead on them like she had originally thought.

Yang hadn't spoken much after having her talk with Richter, she had just given Ruby a bone-crushing hug and went back to following her lead. Richter himself seemed to be opening up to her more and more as the hours passed. Admittedly, the progress was much slower than she preferred, but at least it was something.

Weiss was struggling with the coming storm that her family's company was about to receive. By revealing to Professor Ozpin that the Sirensong was still around, she had revealed her father as a liar. Public relations for the SDC was definitely going to take a hit, but how hard, no one knew. For the first time, Weiss might be dealing with some serious fallout with her father. Ruby felt bad for her pale teammate, she couldn't imagine ever being at odds with her own dad like that.

The red-cloaked girl felt someone shake her in her sleeping bag. Opening her silver eyes, Ruby looked to see Blake standing over her.

"Your turn on watch." Her faunus teammate said.

Ruby rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, "Okay." She replied, grabbing Crescent Rose and finding a high tree branch where she could have a good vantage point. The red-cloaked girl was just settling in when she realized that one of the sleeping bags was empty.

It was Richter's.

Hastily scanning her surroundings with the scope of her rifle, Ruby spotted movement to the south of their position, some distance away. As she zoomed in with the scope, she caught sight of Richter grabbing a beowulf by the shoulders and biting into it's jugular, ripping out a huge piece of dark flesh from the grimm. She winced at the sight, so this is what Weiss was talking about.

Leaping off her tree branch, Ruby swiftly made her way on foot to the clearing that Richter was at. When she arrived, there were several dead grimm lying around her old friend. Richter's back was to her as he dropped the beowulf he was holding, a large chunk of flesh missing from it's neck as it began to dissolve.

"Richter?" She called his name.

He froze up for a moment, before turning towards her slowly, wolfing down a piece of grimm flesh before responding. "Ruby." He said, looking nervous. "Sorry, I was hoping to be discreet."

"It's okay." She reassured him, "Weiss told me about your little grimm-eating thing."

"Yup, this is my diet now." He confirmed, waving an arm to indicate the dead grimm. "No more meat and potatoes for me."

"Is that all you can eat? I mean could you eat normal food?" She asked.

"I could, but it would not sustain me." He answered, finding a nearby tree to lean his back against.

Ruby joined him, taking a spot to his right. "Do you miss it though? Pizza? Burgers? Strawberry milkshakes?"

Richter wiped his mouth with his bandaged right hand. "All the damn time."

She found that she wasn't sure what to say. Which was odd, they had known each other for so long. How could she not know what to talk about? "Well, at least it's a creative way to kill grimm." She said awkwardly, inwardly wincing. Seriously was that the best she could come up with?

Richter actually snorted though, "That is true." He agreed.

Silence settled over the teenagers as they looked up into the stars of the night sky, retreating into their thoughts. Wasn't it a night similar to this a year ago at the manor? Things had seemed so serene right before they began that fateful mission. Which reminded her….

"I haven't told Pearce and Trista you're alive yet." She informed him.

"Good." Came his terse reply, "Keep it that way."

She turned her head to look at him. "But they should know…."

"NO!" He suddenly shouted intensely, standing up from his position on the tree to face her fully. The unexpected outburst shocking Ruby into silence. "They should remember how I was…." He looked down at his hands, "…Not this. Reduced to a creature that feeds off of the filth they are sworn to destroy."

Ruby stood up straight from the tree as well, "They wouldn't think of you like that."

Richter snarled in response, his dark-brown eyes blazing. "They should."

He suddenly doubled over, collapsing to his knees. Ruby was at his side in an instant, but he waved her off.

"I'm fine…!" He said through clenched teeth. "…Just sometimes…a bad reaction…!"

She was far from convinced, especially when multiple inch-long cuts began to appear on his cheeks, forehead, chin and the bridge of his nose. "Richter, your face is bleeding all over!"

"…It'll pass…!" He croaked out, grunting in pain. Not knowing what else to do, Ruby began rubbing his back with her left hand, gripping his right forearm firmly with her right. The rivers of blood continued to flow from his face, pooling beneath him. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the blood stopped and the cuts around his face closed up, as if they were never there.

Richter immediately staggered to his feet, twisting around and falling against a tree trunk. She watched as he collapsed into a sitting position, breathing heavily. He pulled out a cloth from his side pouch and began raising a shaky hand to his face when Ruby gently took it from his grasp, dropping into a crouch on his right side and wiping his face clean of the excess blood.

"You're cold." She noted, seeing him shivering uncontrollably.

He nodded, "….I get bad chills after feeding…" His dark-brown orbs locked onto her silver ones. "Now do you see why I don't want our friends to see me? I'm a wreck."

Ruby knew what Richter was thinking. Because he could rip his face off and eat grimm, he would be shunned by his friends. He was afraid of the look on their faces if they laid eyes on him in his current state. That look of disgust and fear as they deemed him a freak. That was what Richter was afraid of, being ostracized by his closest friends, leaving him all alone.

But that wasn't what was going to happen.

She grasped his hands tightly with her own. "They wouldn't be afraid." She said softly, staring intensely into his dark-brown orbs.

He was surprised by her intensity. "Ruby…"

She touched her forehead to his, never breaking eye contact. "I'm not afraid."

"You shouldn't…."

She closed her eyes and touched her lips to his in a chaste kiss. When she reopened them she saw Richter's dark-brown eyes looking at her in amazement. She was actually surprised at her own actions herself, it was like her body moved on it's own.

This time Richter was the one to press his lips to hers. Ruby felt warmth spread through her body from the kiss, it made her feel serene and content, as if all was right in the world, even though it wasn't.

They separated, though Ruby's forehead was still against his. She could see Richter's dark-brown eyes searching hers fervently, for what she was not sure. Whatever it was he seemed to find it, as he visibly relaxed, allowing himself a small smile.

"Well…." He started, "…At least I'm not cold anymore."

Ruby grinned.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: The next few chapters are the final series of battles for the fic. I'll need more time to plan these out so the updates might come a little slower. Apologies in advance.**


	12. Shattered Worlds 12

**A/N: Been really busy but finally managed to complete this chapter working on it bit by bit, day by day.**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Four Months ago._

 _Richter sat in the corner of his cell, his eyes staring at the wall, but his mind a million miles away. The hunger would be coming again soon and he dreaded every second of it. It was the only thing he felt anymore, that surreal pain that shredded him to pieces both inside and out, only for his body to stubbornly put itself back together. The process had been repeating itself over and over for six months._

 _And he wanted it gone._

 _Richter was tired of the suffering, tired of the rigorous experiments and "Conditioning" that Cinder was putting him through. Mostly, he was tired of wishing he was back at Signal with his friends and knowing that wish was a fleeting dream. He tried not to think of those times anymore as doing so would just make him feel even worse about his predicament. The dark-haired boy held his head in his hands, was this how he was going to spend the rest of his short life?_

 _"You look rather glum Richter." The hated voice of Cinder suddenly said from the other side of his cell's door. "Have you not enjoyed your training and conditioning?"_

 _He didn't even look up from his spot, there was no point in glaring at her anymore. "What do you want?"_

 _"To check up on my valuable research subject of course." Cinder replied. He could almost hear the smirk in her voice._

 _"Well I'm still shitty as always so feel free to leave me alone now."_

 _Silence was his response, maybe she really did leave? Richter could only hope._

 _"It hurts doesn't it?" Came Cinder's question, He sighed, visibly deflating. He should have known better than to hope with her. He looked up, staring into her amber orbs as his fatigued brain processed the question she had asked. "The hunger." She clarified, "It doesn't just hurt physically, it hurts your very soul. A pain like that would make any person desperate enough to stop it." She gave a short laugh, "Well, anyone sane."_

 _Richter's eyes narrowed, "Do you have a point to this or are you just doing it to hear yourself talk?"_

 _"What if I told you there is a way to end the hunger?" Cinder asked, "To end the agony of your bleeding body and soul?"_

 _He snorted in response, "I would say you were full of it."_

 _"And you would be wrong."_

 _A small white rectangular object flew through the cell door's viewport, sliding to Richter's feet. He recognized it immediately, it was a scroll. He considered just ignoring it, but the thought of ending the hunger, even if it was just a cruel joke on Cinder's part, was too enticing to ignore. Picking up the scroll, Richter tapped the screen, looking at the information on it._

 _"Sirensong?" He asked out loud._

 _"Yes, a device that attracts grimm. It's the key to ending your….insatiable appetite for them." She answered._

 _Richter was confused, "What good would this do? I don't need to eat this many grimm."_

 _Cinder chuckled, "Have you forgotten Richter? You're not human anymore, you've been altered. The more grimm you eat, the stronger you become. Strong enough to, shall we say….evolve?"_

 _Curiosity and dread coursed through the dark-haired boy. "Evolve into what?"_

 _"I can't say exactly, but it would be something that was no longer tormented by the hunger."_

 _He stared at her amber-eyes suspiciously, "How do you know all of this?"_

 _"I have my ways." She answered, "There's more on the scroll if you're interested."_

 _Richter swiped the screen once as a new page of information was displayed. "Darion Shiver?"_

 _"A formerly jailed terrorist. He's leading an operation to steal the Sirensong from the Schnee Dust Company." Cinder explained, "They could use a fourth member for their team."_

 _"You want me to be the fourth member." Richter said, cutting to the chase._

 _"You're sharp." She responded, sounding impressed, Richter couldn't care less if she was._

 _He looked up from the scroll's display, scowling at the amber-eyes watching him through the viewport. "I'm a hunter. You think I'm going to turn my back on everything I believe in to join a group of terrorists? Don't make me laugh."_

 _Richter watched as the amber-eyes of Cinder Fall narrowed for a moment. "The only one who would be laughing would be me." She replied condescendingly. "Ask yourself this Richter, what have your so-called beliefs got you so far? Have they helped you escape my lab? Have they somehow conjured your friends to come rescue you?" Her voice lowered into a sinister hiss. "The fact is, everything you've known, everything you've been, it means nothing now."_

 _Outrage, that was the first thing Richter felt, but all too soon it subsided, replaced with a grim finality that Cinder was right. Everything he was had not helped him in the slightest during his imprisonment here. More and more he was distancing himself from his life before. As the days kept passing he found that he cared less and less about Signal, his friends, Ruby. Lately, the only thing on his mind, the only goal he had, was ending this damned hunger. Suicide was an option, but Richter was determined to somehow see Cinder pay for all she had done to him. However, would he sink so low as to work with her in order to get what he wanted? He wasn't sure._

 _"You have two choices Richter." Cinder announced, "You can stay in that cell, getting jabbed with needles every day and live with the agony of the hunger. Or, you can join Darion Shiver's group and make yourself not only stronger, but hunger-free as well." Richter felt off as he glared at the amber-eyes behind the viewport. "I'll give you some time to think about it." She said, her heels clicking loudly in the hall outside as she walked away._

 _It was only when he could no longer hear her footsteps when Richter realized why he felt so off._

 _It was because he had felt nothing. Cinder had even managed to take his feelings from him. Everything had been stripped away._

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present day_

Richter was frustrated.

He had been so focused on one thing, one goal, to end the hunger. It was all he had cared about. He was a monster without a place, so why not play the part?

The short ex-huntsman looked back towards the campsite, spotting the reason for his inner conflict. The petite girl wearing a red cloak and wielding a scythe that was taller than she was, Ruby Rose, his old friend, well more than friends now he supposed, and that's what was bothering him. She made him feel like he was almost human again, but he knew otherwise. What future could they possibly have together? He knew he should just dismiss the notion, but he couldn't, hence his frustration.

"Everything okay?" Ruby's familiar voice reached his ears. Richter almost jumped, she was standing in front of him now. He had not even noticed her walk up, so lost in thought he was.

He closed his eyes, rubbing the eyelids with his right index finger and thumb. "Fine, fine. Just uh, trying to psyche myself up for the coming battle." He told her.

Ruby grabbed his left forearm with her right hand. "We can do this Richter, don't worry." She said with a wink, walking back to the campsite to gather her things. Richter felt something in his chest grow warm, but he ruthlessly shoved it back down, now was not the time to have his thoughts clouded. He needed a clear mind for what was to come.

Instincts told him he was being watched and the short ex-huntsman stood up straight, left hand hovering over the hilt of Dyrnwyn. "Is there something you need Blake Belladonna?" He called out.

"No." A voice said from behind him and to his right, he turned to see the dark-haired huntress perched on a tree branch.

"Then why aren't you with your team?" He asked.

She regarded him coolly. "They aren't the ones I don't trust."

"I see." He said, he might as well get used to the fact that Ruby's entire team wouldn't trust him, he couldn't blame them really.

"You remind me of someone." Blake continued. "A man I was close with. A man who was willing to throw away everything to achieve his goal."

"And did he achieve it?" He asked.

Blake dropped down from the tree branch, knees bending to absorb the impact before rising to her full height, her amber-eyes never leaving him. "That's still up in the air." She answered, "The point is, you have a goal that you are willing to sacrifice a lot for at the end of all of this, just like him. I'm wondering just how far you will go, Richter Bremen."

He narrowed his eyes at the huntress. "I guess we'll find out soon enough won't we?"

"I guess we will." She replied evenly, she began walking back towards the campsite. "Tread lightly Richter, I'm watching you."

Richter contemplated her words after she was out of earshot. How far into darkness did he have to go to end the hunger? How far was he willing to go? It was a legitimate question, one without many answers.

After everyone was packed up, Richter led the way to the hideout, Ruby close behind him. No one spoke, probably because they were mentally preparing themselves for the upcoming battle. It was high stakes, no doubt about it. This wasn't a training lesson, if they failed, the repercussions would be immense. A sea of grimm would be unleashed upon Vale and the kingdom would come under siege.

Finally, after what was only two hours, but seemed so much more, Richter spotted a familiar hill. One that marked they were close to the hideout.

"We're here." He announced to the rest. "Just over this hill will be the hideout's entrance."

The group crouched down, peeking over the hill, spotting the man-sized hole in the side of the mountain. So far there were no grimm or any sign of Darion and Novus. Richter was beginning to believe they beat them to the hideout.

"Help from Vale should be arriving soon." Weiss said. "Maybe we should wait for reinforcements?"

Ruby pulled out Crescent Rose, shifting it into scythe-form. "We can't afford to take that chance. We're going in now." She ordered, "Everyone ready?" The red-cloaked girl received affirmatives from all of her teammates, she turned to Richter, who silently nodded his assent. With that, she faced forward again. "Let's do it!"

Richter followed Ruby and her team as they raced towards the entrance to Darion's hideout, with luck, they may be able to disable the room Gena had made to supplement the Sirensong. However, as they drew closer to the hole in the mountain, Richter realized something was amiss. The entrance, which normally was barely large enough for him to enter unhindered, was now three times the size, as if someone large had busted through it.

Someone large like Novus Procter.

The sound of a gun being loaded instantly drew all of their attention and Richter quickly leapt to his right. Ruby and her team also leapt away, but in different directions. A moment later, the ground they had been standing on exploded, spraying debris everywhere. Richter landed on his feet, facing the entrance to the hideout, where a familiar large man with a red Mohawk walked through, axe resting behind his head, on his shoulders. Novus Procter, in the flesh.

"Look at you all scatter." The axe-wielding goon said, "Like a bunch of rats."

"Novus." Richter snarled.

Novus grinned, "Ah look, it's the traitor who abandoned the winning side for his little girlfriend." He brought his axe off his shoulders and hefted it experimentally, "Good, Darion won't have to sully his hands with your blood."

"It's five against one." Blake pointed out. "Surely you don't expect to win."

Novus raised an eyebrow at the faunus huntress. "Five to one? You must be mistaken."

A rumbling sound began filling Richter's ears, he saw Ruby and her team looking around, trying to locate the source of it. The short ex-huntsman caught movement out of the corner of his eye and looked towards the mountain to see countless specks of black racing down it. Specks of black with white masks, Richter grit his teeth, grimm and a lot of them.

"It's more like a hundred to five." Novus corrected them.

Ruby maneuvered herself to Richter's side. "Is this the Sirensong?" She asked him.

"No, this is all Darion." He replied grimly.

Yang clenched her hands into fists, preparing herself for the onslaught of grimm. "He can summon this many without that thing?"

Richter drew Dyrnwyn from its sheathe. "Yes, he must be close to full strength again."

Ruby's eyes narrowed in determination. "We have to take them out fast then."

No more words needed to be said as Yang sprang into battle, shooting behind her with Ember Celica to gain some extra height in her jump. A beowulf met her in mid-air, right foreclaw reared back in preparation to slice her in half. Yang struck the grimm hard in the snout with her right fist, sending it crashing back into a group of its brethren and knocking them down. Another beowulf jumped up to meet her and Yang slammed her left fist onto the top of its head and fired, propelling herself even higher into the air. When she was at the peak of her jump, the blonde huntress fired above her and used the recoil to crash back down into another group of grimm like a missile. A fiery explosion rocked the ground around Yang as she landed in a crouching position, grimm were scattered all around her from the impact.

The blonde huntress heard the sound of an ursa quickly advancing towards her from behind, there would be no way for her to get up and meet its attack in time. She glanced behind her to see the bear-like grimm with its left forepaw raised. Yang braced herself for the big hit, but it never came. Shots rang out across the forest and the ursa jerked backwards as its face was riddled with bullets. Yang looked back in front of her to spot Blake smirking at her, she smirked back. The ursa collapsed onto its back, dissolving into black smoke in a manner of seconds.

Blake shifted Gambol Shroud back to sword-form as a group of six creeps approached her. She dashed towards them at high-speed, delivering six blindingly fast slashes that cut each grimm in half. As Blake cut down the last grimm, she spotted two ursa ahead of her. One of them raised its forepaws above its head, preparing to slam them down to create a shockwave to hit the faunus huntress, but she wasn't going to let that happen.

Switching her weapon to sickle-form, Blake shot the sickle right into the ursa's vulnerable gut, anchoring it there. She then took a few running steps and leapt into the air to her left, holding on tight to the ribbon as she spun around the pair of ursa, body parallel to the ground. She managed to do a full circle around the pair of bear-like grimm, wrapping the ribbon tight around them and stopping them from moving. She landed on the second ursa's back, gripping the ribbon tight in her right hand. The two ursai snarled at the faunus huntress, trying to get at her with their teeth and foreclaws, but they couldn't reach her. However, Blake herself couldn't finish them off either in the position she was in, it was a stalemate.

Or at least it would have been if she had been alone.

A flash of scarlet sped past the two ursai and a moment later, their heads separated from their shoulders. The scarlet flash coalesced into the familiar form of Ruby, she fired Crescent Rose behind her to boost her speed even further, slicing the legs off a trio of beowulves with a single horizontal slash of her scythe.

The red-cloaked girl landed in a crouching position and was greeted by the sight of a beowulf alpha standing before her. With cat-like reflexes, Ruby fired Crescent Rose into the grimm's chest, using the recoil to push herself out of melee range. Unfortunately, it put her right into swiping distance of an ursa directly behind her. Sparing a glance to the rear, Ruby swiftly aimed at the ground behind her and fired, nailing the ursa in its right kneecap, causing it to roar in pain and tip over onto its right side. The same shot propelled her into the air and she spun her scythe in circles rapidly, building momentum. As gravity took hold once more, Ruby brought the scythe down on her descent, right between the beowulf alpha's eyes. she sliced it clean in half vertically. Without looking, Ruby landed and pointed Crescent Rose behind her, shooting the downed ursa in its left eye, the grimm went limp, dissolving into black smoke.

Dozens of grimm replaced the ones felled, they approached Ruby, who responded by planting her scythe and firing multiple rounds from her sniper rifle. The red-cloaked girl heard the sound of one of Weiss' glyphs forming and she smirked. A second later, her white-clad partner sailed by overhead, Weiss positioned herself upside-down above a group of creeps and formed another glyph at her feet. She darted down onto the grimm as an ivory blur, a large irregular shaped cluster of ice forming on impact and freezing the creeps. The heiress leapt into the air and repeated the action two more times, destroying or freezing the group of grimm that were going to attack Ruby. She then landed in front of the ice clusters and used a pulse of aura from her right palm to shatter them.

Richter observed all of this while cutting down a group of grimm on his own. The short ex-huntsman leapt into the air and brought the tip of Dyrnwyn's blade down on top of an ursa's skull, embedding the blade in it. Still gripping the handle, he planted his feet on the ursa's chest and rode it down as it fell onto its back. He barely had a moment to take a breath before a beowulf took a swing at him. Richter ducked under the attack and thrust his left palm forward, letting out a pulse of his aura from it. The pulse knocked the beowulf several dozen meters away and out of the fight. With a fierce tug on the handle of his weapon, Richter wrested it free and immediately decapitated another beowulf to his right. He then turned and blocked a punch from another ursa with the flat of his blade and counterattacked by lobbing off the offending limb. As the ursa roared in pain, Richter spun behind it, reversing his grip on Dyrnwyn and stabbing the blade into the grimm's back. The ursa gave a jerk and then went limp, the short ex-huntsman removed his blade from its spine and the grimm collapsed face-first into the dirt.

He was about to rejoin Ruby when he spotted something above him coming down fast. Reflexes were the only thing that saved Richter as he leapt backwards. Novus crashed down less than a second later, burying his axe in the spot he just was at. The axe cracked the ground around it, shooting up a decent-sized amount of debris.

Novus looked towards the area Ruby was fighting at, a grin on his face. "You know, I'm impressed by your little girlfriend's prowess." He licked his lips. "I wouldn't mind having a little one-on-one with her myself."

Richter's expression immediately darkened. "Stay away from her." He threatened, his knuckles going white as he gripped Dyrnwyn so tight he thought he might break it.

Novus turned his gaze back towards the short ex-huntsman, a triumphant smile on his face. "I knew you had no business being with us Richter!" He shouted, "You're just a little kid who thinks he's full of darkness, but the only thing you're full of is shit!"

Richter clenched his teeth, doing his best to keep himself calm. His not-so-subtle threat to Ruby affected him more than he cared to admit. He knew she could take care of herself, but he couldn't help but feel protective. Novus had murdered trained hunters before, best if he just stopped the asshole here and now.

"Keep talking." Richter replied with an angry calm, his dark-brown eyes narrowing at the hunter-killer. "I'm going to rip your vocal cords out in a minute."

Novus smiled wider, "Oh, scary."

The massive goon slammed his axe into the ground, creating a linear shockwave that was heading straight for Richter. The short ex-huntsman responded with a shockwave of his own, created by an upswing from his sword. The two waves clashed between the fighters, casting a brilliant light across the forest.

Richter squinted through the bright light, trying to find his opponent. He didn't have to look long as Novus followed his own blast, charging right for him. Realizing the big man was coming too fast, Richter backflipped away to gain some distance, narrowly avoiding being bisected by Novus' horizontal slash with his axe. Halfway through the backflip, Richter spotted Novus swinging his axe back around, at the rate it was going it would slice him in half on his descent. Improvising, the short ex-huntsman extended his sword from his upside-down position in mid-air, stabbing it into the dirt. Less than a second later, the handle of Novus' axe slammed into his blade, halting the swing completely.

Gripping the bottom handle of Dyrnwyn tightly, Richter spun like a top, body parallel to the ground. He slammed the tip of his left boot into Novus' right temple. The big man staggered backwards, still managing to keep his grip on his weapon. The short ex-huntsman landed and switched Dyrnwyn to pistol-form, firing a few rounds at Novus' chest. The hunter-killer's aura shielded him from having his skin punctured, but the impacts still knocked him a few paces backwards. Seeing that his opponent's footing was getting wobbly, Richter switched his weapon back to sword-form. He raced towards Novus, leaping into the air and executing a full spin to build momentum. He brought his blade down towards the big man's neck in a vicious overhead swing.

The short ex-huntsman's strike hit nothing, but metal.

Richter's eyes widened as Novus managed to block his sword with the handle of his axe. Pain blossomed from the short ex-huntsman's gut shortly after as Novus buried his right fist into it. Doubling over in mid-air, Richter was soon hit hard in the face from the hunter-killer's left fist, sending him sailing backwards. He landed hard on his back, causing him to shut his eyes and let out a grunt of pain. Opening one eye, Richter spotted Novus high in the air, his axe raised over his head, ready to slice him in half.

Not good. He needed to move.

His body responded to his desperate thought and Richter managed to roll backwards a moment before Novus crashed down. He had barely rolled to his feet when he was knocked off them again from a blast from the top part of Novus' axe, apparently it housed the barrel of the shotgun part of his weapon.

Once again, Richter found himself on his back. He propped himself up on his elbows to see Novus dashing towards him, axe scraping across the ground. The short ex-huntsman realized with great alarm that he planned to split him in half from groin to skull. Thinking quickly, Richter switched his weapon to pistol-form and fired a baseball-sized blast of aura at Novus' face. The blast forced the big man to halt his charge and bring his axe up to block it. Richter used the same blast's recoil to roll back to his feet. He took aim again only to realize that Novus had somehow closed the distance between them and was aiming his shotgun at him. The barrels of their weapons were less than a meter away from each other, each charging up a shot. A clashing set of blasts from this range would be dangerous.

Neither combatant hesitated to pull the trigger.

Richter's vision was filled with the colors of red, orange and black as a giant explosion burst forth between Novus and himself. He felt Dyrnwyn fly from his fingers as he was propelled backwards, tumbling helplessly from the concussive force of the explosion. He bounced several times on the ground before lying still in a prone position.

After a few long moments, the short ex-huntsman raised himself to a crouching position and looked towards the area he was knocked away from. The explosion had dissipated, leaving behind a crater that was the size of a small house. Across the crater was Novus, who looked like he was also shaking the cobwebs out. Richter noticed that the big man had also lost his weapon in the explosion.

Novus finished shaking his head and looked to his left, which was Richter's right. The short ex-huntsman also looked in that direction to see Ruby slice the stinger off of a deathstalker with her scythe. He looked back at Novus to catch the hunter-killer licking his lips. The big man then turned his gaze back towards Richter and winked.

Richter's lips peeled back into a snarl, no words needed to be said, he knew who Novus would be going for next if he fell here. There was no way he was letting this bastard get near Ruby, weapon or not.

Rising to a standing position, Richter clenched his hands tightly into fists and dashed towards Novus. Determined to stop the big man at all costs.

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 **A/N: The finale battle is approaching and I might get carried away with the fight scenes, should be exciting though!**


	13. Shattered Worlds 13

**A/N: Here it is, the start of the finale. This one is going to be multiple chapters long. Hope you enjoy it.**

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Richter raced forward, anger fueling his veins as he closed the distance between himself and Novus. The big mohawked man mirrored his action, putting the two combatants on a collision course. The short ex-huntsman knew he might be at a disadvantage without Dyrnwyn, but he had two things going for him. One was that his father had taught him enough about weaponless combat to hold his own. And the other….

He didn't get to finish as he reached melee range with Novus, who immediately tried to land a right cross to his jaw. Richter ducked under the punch and executed a vicious uppercut that connected with Novus' square chin. The force of the blow pulled the big man off his feet.

Richter smirked, the other thing he had was that he was stronger than he looked, the only good thing to come out of all of Cinder's experiments on him.

The short ex-huntsman leapt a short distance into the air, performing a roundhouse kick that nailed Novus just below his sternum. The big man was sent backwards where he somehow landed on his feet, momentum still carried him backwards at a rapid pace and he eventually fell face-first and ate the dirt. Richter moved as fast as he could towards his opponent, he wanted to keep Novus as off-balance as much as possible. The distance between the short ex-huntsman and the hunter-killer disappeared and Richter tried to land a punch to Novus' left temple with his right hand. The big man blocked the attack with his left forearm and then lunged forward with his forehead, slamming it hard into his own.

Richter's vision doubled from the force of the headbutt. He saw two blurry right hands grab the front of his shirt, pick him up, and slam him hard on the back of his head and shoulders. The short ex-huntsman immediately battled up to his hands and knees, not wanting to be grounded for even a second. However, he felt something grab the back collar of his grey cloak and he was airborne once more. He felt his spine slam into something very solid and pain shot through his entire body. The sound of something cracking reached his ears and he suddenly felt himself falling again. This time, Richter landed face-down on the ground, the broken trunk of a tree landing a few meters at his right. So that was what broke.

Even though he was stronger than an average person, even though he could fight without a weapon, in a straight out fist fight with Novus Procter, he would lose. He had to outsmart and outmaneuver his large opponent and he had a plan to do just that. But he couldn't afford to make any mistakes, one misstep and it would be over.

"That all you got Richter!?" He heard Novus roar ahead of him.

"No." Richter replied, he saw Novus was standing right where he needed him to be and grinned. Using his semblance, the short ex-huntsman activated a land mine he had planted under his opponent's feet after he had thrown him the first time.

The detonation threw Novus up into the air and Richter leapt up to match his altitude. The short ex-huntsman hit him with a half-dozen rapid series of punches before finishing with a fierce kick to Novus' throat. Blood spewed from the big man's mouth as he was propelled into a tree, shattering its trunk. The hunter-killer pinballed between two more trees before finally falling limply to the ground below.

Richter landed easily on his feet and walked slowly towards the downed Novus, who was currently lying on his left side. His eyes were bloodshot and he was holding his throat, gurgles of pain escaped his lips, but no words.

There was no compassion in Richter's eyes as he stood before his downed opponent. "I guess I lied Novus." He informed the big man. "I said I'd rip out your vocal chords, but I crushed them instead." He shrugged. "Oh well, I didn't say I was perfect." Richter slammed his right fist into Novus face, his hand came back bloody, but he didn't care. There was no way he was leaving things to chance with this guy, not after what he planned to do to Ruby. He turned his back on Novus' unmoving form and walked away, not giving the big man another thought.

After some searching he found Dyrnwyn and regrouped with Ruby just as she and her team were finishing off the last of the grimm. She buried the tip of Crescent Rose into the head of a creep as she looked around, accounting for him and all of her team members.

"Everyone okay?" She asked, she received a collection of affirmatives from the group.

The very loud sound of what appeared to be machinery powering up filled their ears. Ruby and her group looked around in confusion and one by one they turned to look at Richter. The short ex-huntsman's teeth were tightly clenched as he stared grimly at the hole in the mountain that marked Darion's hideout's entrance.

"That isn't what I think it is, is it?" Weiss asked.

"It is." Richter confirmed their worst fears. "Darion has activated the Sirensong."

"Uh oh." Yang said, looking around the forest in expectation of being swarmed by grimm.

"We need to hurry." Blake said, looking at Ruby.

The red-cloaked girl nodded in response. "Agreed, let's go."

Richter followed Ruby and her team into the hideout. The short ex-huntsman was racking his brain furiously for whatever information he had on the Sirensong. It would take twenty minutes for it to fully activate. So they still had time to take Darion down and deactivate it. But if he did that he would never get his chance to end the hunger. A frustrated growl escaped his throat. He'd worry about that later, one problem at a time.

They reached the circular room filled with tech. Eerie blue lights glowed throughout the large dark room and at the center stood a thick pillar of metal. The pillar had several lines of the eerie blue light coursing throughout its surface and in the center of the pillar was the small barrel-shaped object that Richter knew was the Sirensong. Standing before the pillar, with his back turned to the group was Darion Shiver. He was back in his human form, a new green military dress uniform on. He did not acknowledge Richter or Ruby's team's presence in the slightest as they entered.

Ruby took point, slamming the bottom of her scythe to the ground. "Sorry, but you're grimm party is canceled Darion."

Darion turned his head to glance at the red-cloaked girl, a smirk on his lips. "Oh damn, and I've already sent out the party invitations to the guests." He returned his gaze to the pillar before him. "You're about to witness a momentous occasion in Remnant's history, the day humans and faunus stopped their petty squabbles and united under a true god."

Ruby narrowed her silver eyes at Darion. "The four kingdoms will never follow you."

This time Darion did turn to face them. "Ah, but that's the beauty of it Ruby Rose. They won't have a choice in the matter. The kingdoms will either serve me…." The smirk on his lips was replaced with a deep frown. "….Or I'll crush them under my heel."

Weiss stepped to Ruby's right side, her rapier pointed at Darion. "Step away from the Sirensong."

Darion snorted, "Or what? You'll put me down? Because you did a real good job of that the last time we fought."

Richter decided to chime in. "The same goes for you Darion, you couldn't take us out either."

Darion leveled his madness-filled gaze at him. "The impromptu save from your little girlfriend threw me off. This time I'm prepared and I'll make examples out of you." His right hand went to cover his left eye. "The world will look upon your broken bodies and see what it means to defy their new god."

The sound of flesh ripping filled the chamber as Darion ripped his face off, the group watched as the psychopath transformed into his altered state, sprouting his bat-like wings from his shoulders and ebony-colored scales appeared over his skin. Jade green glowing eyes glared at the group with bloodlust.

"Now then!" Darion said in his now distorted voice. "Let's get this fucking party started!"

Yang took a running step forward. "Couldn't have said it any better!"

The blonde huntress sprang into action, making the first move, aiming her right fist at Darion's face. The transformed psychopath answered by producing his sword and pointing the tip at the floor. He blocked Yang's punch with the flat of his blade, but before he could counterattack, Blake blurred into place behind him, sword ready to pierce his back.

Reacting quickly, Darion delivers a swift mule kick that nailed Blake in the jaw, staggering her backwards. Seeing an opportunity, Yang tried to hit the psychopath in the head with her left fist. Darion ducked under the blow and retaliated by hitting the blonde huntress in her left side with his left elbow. The attack sent Yang flying to her right. The transformed psychopath immediately executed a horizontal slash behind him, forcing Blake to parry the slash, the force of the swing sliding the faunus huntress back a few meters.

Facing forward again, Darion swings his sword in a downward arc, barely pinning Weiss' rapier to the ground before it could reach his throat. The psychopath followed up with a backhand to Weiss' left cheek, the blow sending her back the way she had come.

Richter saw his opening, without thinking twice, the short ex-huntsman dashed in, sword ready. When he was in melee range of Darion he planted his left foot, bringing Dyrnwyn up in a fierce upward swing aimed at his enemy's chest. He was surprised when he sensed Ruby just to his right, mirroring his action. It was a little scary how in sync they were.

Unfortunately, Darion dodged their simultaneous slashes by flapping his wings and taking flight. Switching Dyrnwyn to pistol-form, Richter charged up a basketball-sized sphere of aura and fired. Ruby joined in with shots from her sniper rifle. Darion snorted at the display and reared his sword back, bringing it forward in a diagonal slash that not only destroyed Richter's aura sphere and Ruby's sniper rounds, but also created a wave of black-green aura that sped towards the pair. Ruby and Richter were forced to roll in opposite directions to avoid getting hit by the aura wave.

"Why do you fail to understand that this world needs an immortal deity to watch over it?!" Darion demanded.

"And you're that deity? I find that hard to believe." Ruby responded.

Darion growled, pointing the tip of his sword at the red-cloaked girl and firing. Ruby narrowly dodged the shot with her semblance. "Have you seen the alternative?" Darion asked, Richter tried to close the distance between himself and the psychopath, but he was noticed. Darion sent a shot his way and he was forced to abandon his charge and leap to his left. "Look at the progress humans and faunus have made since their conception." Darion kept firing at Ruby and Richter with his sword, keeping them on the evasive. The psychopath held up four fingers with his left hand. "Four kingdoms! Only four kingdoms after all these centuries!" His jade-green glowing eyes narrowed, "Want to know why their progress is so stymied?"

Darion was interrupted from a sniper shot by Ruby, although he blocked it with his sword, it interrupted his train of thought. He retaliated by firing multiple rounds in quick succession at the red-cloaked huntress. Ruby ran along the chamber's eastern wall, using her semblance to stay just ahead of Darion's barrage. Seeing she was in trouble, Richter leapt at Darion's back, weapon in pistol-form. The short ex-huntsman knew that the psychopath probably detected his presence, but he was ready for that.

Sure enough, as Richter approached Darion's melee range, the transformed psychopath hastily turned around to face him, bringing his sword around in a horizontal slash to cleave him in half at the waist. The short ex-huntsman fired at the ground with his pistol, using the recoil to rise just above Darion's swing, he performed a quick flip, shifting his weapon into sword-form in the process. As he completed the flip, Richter gripped his sword with both hands above his head, before he could bring it down on Darion's skull however, he was knocked back by a sidekick delivered to the top of his sternum by Darion. Richter snarled in frustration, executing a backflip to slow his descent, he landed on his feet, switched Dyrnwyn to pistol-form, and fired an aura blast at Darion's winged form. The psychopath answered his blast with one of his own and the two aura blasts clashed between them, black-white against black-green. The two blasts eventually expired, sending out a shockwave that forced the two combatants to brace themselves against it.

Darion continued with his conversation. "The four kingdoms' progress has stagnated, because the strong try to protect the weak when they should just let them die." He turned to see Ruby aiming her sniper rifle at him. It didn't seem to faze him in the slightest. "Remnant is a harsh world, if you're soft it'll chew you up and spit you out. This is the ultimate fucking rule of life." He aimed his sword at the red-cloaked huntress. "One humanity seems to have FORGOTTEN!" He roared the last word, firing at Ruby. She rolled to her right to avoid the shot and then offered up two shots from her sniper rifle in reprisal. Darion flew to his right to avoid the shots.

Ruby reloaded her weapon and one by one, her teammates regrouped with her. "You're the one who has forgotten Darion." She replied, "It is because of people's love and compassion that four kingdoms still stand. No matter how hard the grimm try, they have never succeeded in destroying them." Her silver eyes narrowed as her voice lowered to a dangerous tone. "That is what survival of the fittest will get you, a miserable existence banging your head against an impenetrable wall."

Richter rejoined Ruby and her team, landing at her left side. He looked up to see Darion's scowling face. "You're all naïve kids. You have no idea how the world works."

Richter dropped into a fighting stance along with Ruby and her team. He was waiting for the right time to go into his altered form. By his rough estimates they had about fifteen minutes before the Sirensong became active. If he went all out with his altered form he could maintain it maybe four minutes, five max. However if he went that long, he would be next to useless as he reverted back to his human form. Best to use it sparingly, and bring it out when he had a clear opening to finish Darion.

The short ex-huntsman blinked, and Darion went from hovering in mid-air in front of him to standing between Ruby and himself. Richter could only watch helplessly as she barely got her scythe's handle up in time to block the psychopath's lunge at her heart with his sword. The force of the impact sent Ruby sailing backwards.

Richter quickly took aim with his pistol, looking to shoot Darion in the head, but as fast as he was, Darion was faster. The transformed psychopath nailed him with a diagonal slash on his right flank. Even with his aura, the slash still cut into his side a little, not to mention the power behind the attack sent him face-first into the unforgiving eastern wall. Richter felt his face bounce off the metal surface of the wall before falling to the ground in a supine position.

He could only watch as the rest of Ruby's team went to counter-attack. Weiss was charging headfirst at Darion, sliding across the ground as if it was made of ice. Darion reared his right hand back in preparation to cut the heiress down, when Blake wrapped the ribbon of her weapon in sickle-form around his right forearm. The faunus huntress held the ribbon tight, preventing Darion from moving his weapon-arm. Weiss lunged forward with her rapier, seeking to pierce the psychopath's left eye. Richter watched with anticipation, Darion couldn't defend himself with his sword, the heiress' strike was going to be successful!

And then Darion stopped the rapier just centimeters from his eye by grabbing the blade with his left hand. Richter's eyes widened in shock at the same time as Weiss'

"You're wasting your time." Darion told the heiress.

Yang dashed forward, her right hand cocked back, ready to cave Darion's face in. The psychopath readjusted his grip on Weiss' rapier and threw her into the blonde huntress' right flank just before she could punch him. The two huntress' fell away in a tangle of limbs. Blake continued to keep Darion's right arm tied down, holding onto her ribbon with a white-knuckled grip.

"Get it through your thick skulls." Darion said, exerting himself, he pulled his right arm forward, pulling a surprised Blake into the air. In the next second, he gripped the ribbon of her weapon in his right hand and whipped the faunus huntress right on top of her friends. The ground cratered under them. "I am stronger than you all!"

Several bullets suddenly made contact with Darion's chest, arms and legs. They staggered him a bit. Richter struggled to his hands and knees, stars danced in his vision as he caught sight of Ruby standing near the southern wall where they had originally entered. Her weapon was in gun-form as she continued firing consecutive rounds at Darion. The psychopath roared in fury, spreading his wings wide, he took flight towards the red-cloaked girl, body parallel to the floor and only a meter off the ground. With some effort, Richter struggled to his knees, he had to do something.

Firing his pistol behind him multiple times to build speed. Richter ran after Darion, when he felt he was close enough, he switched Dyrnwyn to sword-form and leapt into the air. The short ex-huntsman struck his blade out in a horizontal slash to the back of the psychopath's head. At the last possible moment, Darion flapped his wings and suddenly reversed his direction. Richter's attack hit nothing but air as the transformed psychopath maneuvered himself behind and above him with surprising swiftness.

Richter turned around to face Darion once more and was greeted by the sight of the crazy man curled into a ball and rotating very rapidly. The psychopath suddenly extended his right leg and Richter suddenly felt like a plane was dropped on the back of his head. He knew nothing more after that.

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Ruby witnessed Darion slam the heel of his right boot into the back of Richter's skull. Her childhood friend's head made a sickly thud as it made contact with the floor, cracks spidered across the ground where he impacted. Richter's body went limp, no doubt the blow had knocked him out cold.

The red-cloaked huntress sprang into action, slashing at Darion's upper torso and forcing him away from Richter's downed form. She continued to execute a series of horizontal and diagonal slashes, aiming for the psychopath's head and chest area. Darion was just too nimble though, dodging all of her attacks.

Ruby tried a diagonal upswing aimed at the psychopath's left temple, but Darion blocked it in mid-swing with his left palm, barehanded. The red-cloaked huntress snarled in frustration, but her facial expression soon changed to that of surprise and pain as Darion kicked her hard in the stomach with his right foot. The boot sent her sailing backwards where she hit the floor with her shoulders, tumbling backwards with a few uncontrolled rolls before stopping. She grimaced from her supine position on the floor, man did he hit hard.

She struggled to her feet, just in time to see Darion examining his left palm. At first Ruby was wondering what he was doing and then she saw it, a single drop of blood fell from his palm. So, Crescent Rose was able to pierce his skin, good, if she could make him bleed, she could destroy him.

Darion stopped examining his left palm to look at her. "Hmm, that's a sharp weapon you have there."

Ruby managed a half-smile, half-grimace as she was still hurting from his last attack. "That's right, and I'm going to use it to chop you into cold cuts."

Darion raised a jade-green eyebrow, "Oh?"

He took off towards her, wings keeping him afloat just above the floor. Ruby hastily took aim with her sniper rifle and fired, but with impossible speed, Darion flapped his wings and dodged to his left. The bullet whizzed by the space he had occupied a quarter of a second ago and the psychopath continued on to fly directly behind Ruby before she could think of getting a second shot off. Ruby gasped in surprise, when did he get so fast?

"Please try, I could use the amusement." He said from behind her.

Ruby immediately used her semblance, blurring away to her left as she saw Darion bring his blade down to cleave her in half vertically a moment later. The red-cloaked huntress borrowed a page from his strategy book, circling around to get to his back. Rose petals exploded around her as she stopped. The look of shock on Darion's altered face was priceless.

"You're not the only one who's fast." She said with a smirk.

Darion tried to turn around and block her next attack, but he was too slow. Ruby activated her semblance again, becoming a red cloaked blur that drilled into the psychopath's midsection. Amazingly, Darion managed to halt her forward momentum for one single second and then he gave and they were rocketing towards the western wall at breakneck speeds.

They crashed into the wall with the force of a meteor, and Darion imprinted himself on it. Ruby kept him pinned there, she had managed to embed her scythe into the right side of Darion's abdomen. The psychopath's sword was also trapped against his chest, thanks to Crescent Rose's handle. Ruby's eyes lit up as she saw victory was close at hand.

Darion saw the same thing and his eyes became wide with rage, and a little fear. "You little bitch!" He shouted.

"Eat this!" Ruby screamed, pulling the trigger on Crescent Rose and using the recoil to execute a vicious diagonal slash that tore through Darion's abdomen. Blood poured from the psychopath's grievous wound as Ruby landed smoothly from her recoil shot a dozen meters away, her back facing her opponent.

She glanced back at Darion to see him collapsed to his knees, his left arm desperately covering the large wound in his abdomen. Blood was beginning to pool underneath him. The transformed psychopath looked at her with bloodshot eyes and tried to rise up, but his body gave out and he collapsed into a prone position on the floor.

Ruby flicked the excess blood off of Crescent Rose, redirecting her gaze to her fallen team members, it was over. They had won. Now she had to make sure her friends were okay and then destroy the Sirensong. Things would go back to normal after that.

The red-cloaked huntress began walking towards her team, who were starting to untangle themselves from the pile Darion had put them in. Ruby felt relief wash over her as she saw them move, everyone made it out of the battle okay. She glanced at Richter's unconscious form, he would probably need medical attention and then they had to figure out how to cure him of his transformation. There had to be a way.

So absorbed Ruby was in her thoughts that she didn't notice the wetness that sprayed across her left cheek, nor the sudden weakness in her limbs. The scent of blood was what finally drew her from her thoughts and it was close. Looking down, the red-cloaked huntress noticed a hole in her left shoulder area, just above her left breast. A hole that was smoking. With this realization came a wave of pain and Ruby's legs gave out. She collapsed to her knees, the pain so intense she couldn't even cry out.

"You are too naïve, Ruby Rose." Darion's strained voice said from behind her. She weakly looked behind her to see the transformed psychopath walking towards her, left arm covering the wound on his abdomen. "The blow you dealt me was indeed a killing blow. If I was still human."

Darion suddenly lunged forward with his left foot, planting it squarely between her shoulder blades. Ruby was propelled forward, she bounced once belly-first off the floor before sliding to a stop in a prone position. She tried to rise up, but her body didn't want to respond.

"Still, I have to admit, you had me dead to rights. You should have followed up when you had the chance." Darion said, he walked over to Ruby's prone form and she could only glare at him. "Unfortunately, your inexperience as a huntress has led to your downfall." The psychopath raised his sword in his right hand, hovering the tip of the blade over Ruby, her silver eyes widened. "I'll make you the first example of what happens when you mess with a god."

Darion smirked as he brought the blade down and Ruby screamed in agony.

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 **A/N: I'm thinking another two chapters and maybe an epilogue and this story will be finished. It's been fun to write, but I'm not sure if it's been as fun to read.**

 **See you all next chapter!**


	14. Shattered Worlds 14

**A/N: Almost to the end!**

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Blackness.

That was all Richter could see, an empty void of nothingness surrounding him. He couldn't hear anything, he couldn't feel anything, he was just…there. The place was all too familiar for him, it was a place he often ended up in when the injections and experiments had become too much. At first, Richter resisted the oblivion, the feeling of having your senses taken away was unnerving, but as time went on under Cinder's "Care." He began to tolerate it and in time, toleration became yearning. For the blackness shielded him from the misery he had been in, even if it was only for a limited time.

However, the short ex-huntsman was confused, why was he here now? He usually remembered why he had returned to the ebony depths, but right now he was drawing a blank. He felt the answer just out of his mind's reach, teasing him.

The answer came in a scream, but not his. It was Ruby's.

And then it all came back to him, the blackness receded from his vision like a curtain opening for the first act of a theatre production. Richter found himself lying in a prone position, his dark-brown eyes searched the room for Ruby and her team. He found Yang, Weiss and Blake towards the middle of the room, trying to gather their senses just like he was. His search continued until he found Ruby and when he did he felt his blood start to boil.

Standing over her prone petite form was Darion. The transformed psychopath's sword was embedded in Ruby's right thigh. Richter couldn't see her silver eyes as she had them tightly shut in an attempt to cope with the pain she was in.

Darion leaned on his sword, earning a groan of pain from his red-cloaked friend. "Do you feel it closing in around you Ruby Rose?" He taunted. "The inevitability of your demise?"

Ruby's team had seen her predicament as well, they rose to their feet, but before they could do anything, Darion removed his sword from Ruby's leg, earning another cry of pain from her. The transformed psychopath pointed the tip of his sword at the three huntresses, firing a decent-sized aura blast that knocked them away from their beleaguered leader.

That was when Ruby struck.

Fighting through her pain, she grabbed Crescent Rose and hastily aimed it at Darion's chest, firing a recoil shot to increase the distance between herself and him. Once she gained that distance, she immediately planted the blade of her scythe into the metal floor and began firing sniper rounds at the psychopath. Darion blocked or deflected the rounds with his blade.

Richter rose to his feet, running to regroup with Ruby's team. His red-cloaked friend had got herself out of immediate danger, but with her leg injured, she wasn't going to be able to move well at all. She was merely buying time and they had to do something. Yang was apparently thinking the same thing as she bent her knees in preparation to leap into the fight when Weiss held out her right arm to obstruct her path.

"Wait!" The heiress said.

Yang quickly turned her head towards the white-haired huntress. "Ruby's in trouble!"

Weiss' eyebrows furrowed. "I know that, but if we're going to do this, we're going to have to do this right."

Blake readied her weapons. "Do you have a plan?"

The heiress turned her gaze onto Richter. "Can you transform?"

Richter answered her gaze with a questioning one of his own. "I can."

Weiss tightened the grip on her rapier. "We're going to need your help." She informed him, a smirk played upon her lips. "Think you can keep up?"

Richter snorted in response. "Just tell me what to do."

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby continued firing her sniper rifle as Darion began to advance on her. The red-cloaked huntress was favoring her left leg heavily. She could feel the wetness of her blood as it ran down the outside of her right leg. Running was out of the question with this injury, all she could do was stick to ranged combat. Although once her current magazine exhausted all its ammo, Darion would probably attack her while she tried to reload and the next injury would be worse, much worse.

Suddenly, five circular glyphs with the designs of a snowflake appeared above and behind Darion. Ruby recognized them immediately, Weiss' glyphs. She saw Darion let out a grunt of annoyance as the glyphs fired sharp shards of ice at his back. He flew straight up into the air, dodging them easily and turned to face the rest of Ruby's team.

"When are you idiots going to learn you can't win." Darion said.

Weiss responded by conjuring three more glyphs at Darion's back, "You'll have to forgive us if we don't take your word for it." She said to him.

Darion's lip curled in contempt, he quickly turned and fired three shots in rapid succession, each one shattering one of Weiss' glyphs before it could fire on him. He then turned back towards Weiss and the rest, firing a blast of aura from the tip of his blade that was about a two meters wide in diameter. Weiss responded by stabbing her sword into the ground, erecting a protective cluster of ice around the group just before the blast made contact. The cluster managed to hold just long enough to withstand the blast and then it shattered.

As countless shards of frozen water fell to the floor, the sickle-form of Gambol Shroud emerged from the broken cluster. It flew towards Darion, who batted it away contemptuously to his right. The transformed psychopath then dodged in that same direction to avoid Yang's punch. He slammed the pommel of his weapon into the back of Ruby's sister's head, slamming her against the western wall. Ruby could only watch helplessly as Yang fell limply to the floor.

The red-cloaked huntress saw a blast of black-white aura approach Darion from his right side, but he flew up to dodge it. The winged psychopath then swooped down on top of Richter, the one responsible for the blast, landing a good cut on her cherished friend's right shoulder. Blood flew from the freshly-made wound as Richter found himself propelled face-first into the floor.

Ruby caught a glimpse of Weiss forming one of her time glyphs under her. A golden glow appeared around the huntress as the gears in the glyph spun faster. Once the glyphs disappeared, Weiss rushed towards Darion, pointing her right index and middle finger at him. A circle of glyphs formed around the winged psychopath's current position and Weiss used her enhanced speed to leap into one. The heiress dove from glyph to glyph at high speeds, moving so fast she was merely an ivory blur as she hit Darion each time she moved to a new glyph. The psychopath was staggered back and forth from the hits, unable to get a bead on the heiress.

Or so Ruby thought…

Darion suddenly reached out with his left hand and amazingly, caught Weiss by her right ankle. How the psychopath managed to do that, Ruby was not sure, but she saw her surprise was mirrored on the heiress' face. Darion slammed her spine-first hard into the western wall, deep cracks appearing at her point of impact. Weiss closed her eyes and clenched her teeth in pain. His hand still gripped on her ankle, Darion tossed the pale huntress to the ground, where she bounced once and ended up on her belly.

There was no time for the psychopath to gloat as Blake came down from above him with her sword. He blocked the vertical slash with his own blade, but the faunus huntress had come down with such force that it grounded him. As Darion's feet touched the floor, he dodged to his left, narrowly avoiding a second slash from Blake's sheathe. He flapped his wings, gaining about half a dozen meters of distance from the faunus, but Blake didn't relent. She switched Gambol Shroud to pistol-form, firing about six or seven shots at Darion. The psychopath blocked them all with the flat of his blade and then advanced towards Blake, striking at her with an overhead slash that would take her head and right arm off.

Blake took a step back, swiftly shifting her weapon back to sword-form. She deflected Darion's swing to her right, but the psychopath quickly recovered and swung again, this time at the opposite side of her. Blake once again repeated her deflection maneuver, this time diverting it towards her left.

Ruby frowned as she watched Darion continue to force Blake to retreat. Although her faunus teammate was keeping herself from harm and deflecting Darion's powerful swings, she could see the effort was taking a toll on her. Blake was drenched in sweat and her mouth was hanging open as her body demanded more and more oxygen to keep going at that pace. The red-cloaked huntress bit her lip in frustration, she was currently in the process of patching up her right leg, which she was accomplishing by ripping off pieces of her cloak and using them as makeshift bandages. It wasn't much, but it was something while her aura went to work. Until then though, all she could do was watch, and she hated every second of it.

Blake suddenly lashed out with her sword, performing an upward slash. Darion reeled from the faunus' sudden offensive strike, a small cut appearing on his left cheek. A thin trail of black smoke rose from the wound and Darion growled in annoyance. With a sudden surge of speed he pushed the tip of his sword forward, pushing it right through Blake's chest.

Darion's lips curled upward into a smirk, but it soon became a frown as Blake suddenly vanished in a flash of black. Appearing just behind the destroyed clone was Richter. She watched her childhood friend jump up and plant his feet firmly on the blunt back end of Darion's sword, pinning it to the ground. He then ran up the sword, onto the psychopath's right forearm, and delivered a fierce boot to Darion's chin with his right foot. Richter transitioned immediately from the kick into a backflip and as he completed it, he aimed Dyrnwyn in pistol-form at Darion's face and pulled the trigger. The bullet didn't pierce the psychopath's aura, but it did daze him. Darion stumbled back a few steps, holding his head with his left hand.

"Richter!" Ruby heard Blake call out, she watched as her faunus teammate threw Gambol Shroud in sickle-form to her old friend, who caught it with his right hand and stretched it taut. Blake did the same thing on her end. A moment later, Weiss maneuvered herself behind them both, extending her right hand. Yang leapt onto Gambol Shroud's ribbon, bending it back towards Weiss, who conjured up one of her black snowflake glyphs with her right hand and trapped the ribbon.

Ruby grinned at what Richter and her team were planning to do, it was the same technique they had used to take out the nevermore, before they had even become a team. The red-cloaked huntress finished patching her leg and reached for her rifle. She needed to be ready to support them.

Weiss released the glyph, slingshotting Yang towards the staggering Darion. The blonde huntress let out a battlecry as she sailed across the air, planting her right hand hard between Darion's eyes and firing Ember Celica. The strike was so strong it sent a shockwave through the room and Ruby did her best to brace against it as she loaded a different kind of magazine into Crescent Rose. It was a more rare type of ammunition, one that could maybe turn the tide in this battle.

Darion came sailing by on Ruby's right, to her surprise, the psychopath was still conscious and he stabbed his sword into the western wall, slowing his impromptu flight. Ruby took careful aim with Crescent Rose, looking down the scope. She could take a headshot right now, but she wasn't sure it would be enough to kill him, not to mention he had been able to block a lot of their stuff with that damned sword of his. The red-cloaked huntress took a deep breath and held it, steadying her aim, if she couldn't destroy Darion, she would do the next best thing.

Ruby pulled the trigger and Darion suddenly howled in pain. The bullet ripped through the psychopath's right forearm and tore it to shreds, effectively amputating his right hand. Copious amounts of black smoke belched forth from Darion's stump of a right limb, what was left of his right hand still gripped the sword embedded in the western wall, now out of his reach. Ruby smirked at the damage she had done.

If she couldn't destroy Darion, she would disarm him.

"Now!" Weiss called out, looking pointedly at Richter, she formed a time glyph in front of him. Ruby observed as her childhood friend ran onto the glyph, a golden glow surrounding him as it temporarily sped up his movement. Bending his legs at the knees, He shot forward like a bullet, stopping instantly right above Darion, who's body was now parallel to the ground in mid-air.

They made eye contact then, the two former allies. Ruby saw contempt and disgust in Richter's eyes, the same ones that looked at her with compassion and love. It was a little jarring to see Richter's eyes that way, even if it wasn't directed at her. It was almost like he was a different person. Darion's eyes on the other hand were filled with outrage and fear, because he knew without his sword he was at the mercy of Richter.

And judging from the look he was giving Darion, he would receive no mercy from Richter at all.

Just like in Vale, Ruby's childhood friend reached up and ripped off his face to reveal the altered form beneath. He roared in his distorted voice and his transformation sent a pulse of aura so strong it seemed like it shook the entire mountain. Rearing his right hand back, Richter brought Dyrnwyn forward in a vicious diagonal slash that cut into Darion's chest. A moment after, an angry glowing orange line appeared where Richter had cut. Darion saw it and his eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

"NO!" He shouted.

And then the orange line of aura detonated.

The explosion was so strong that car-sized chunks of debris fell from the ceiling, the ground shook violently as Ruby anchored Crescent Rose and held on for dear life as the shockwave knocked her off her feet. Pieces of rock and metal fell to the floor all around her. She looked over to her team to find them bracing themselves against the explosion in a similar fashion. The red-cloaked girl wondered how the hell the entire mountain didn't come down on them with an explosion like that, one sturdy piece of stone for sure.

Then it was over, Richter landed in a crouching position. Ruby watched as her childhood friend grimaced. Flesh regenerated back over his face, the horns receded into his forehead and his orange glowing eyes dimmed back to the familiar dark-brown. He took a few deep breaths before looking at her.

Ruby dislodged Crescent Rose, using it as a makeshift cane as she limped towards Richter, "Did we do it?" She asked him. Richter turned back around to where they had last seen Darion in response.

There was a crater about a dozen meters in diameter where the psychopath had crashed after Richter's attack. Smoke billowed up from the center of it. Ruby narrowed her silver eyes, she wanted to see Darion's lifeless form with her own eyes, to confirm he was really gone and neutralized as a threat. The smoke cleared after a handful of seconds, revealing Darion's mangled form. His chest had a very large gash from his left collarbone to the right side of his abdomen. Tiny flames the size of her fingers littered his arms and legs, but the most telltale sign for Ruby was the unblinking eyes, staring into the ceiling.

Darion Shiver was dead, they had stopped him from using the Sirensong to summon a horde of grimm and saved the day.

"We did it." Richter confirmed, she looked to her left to see her childhood friend smiling at her.

Relief and elation surged through Ruby and she leapt at Richter, wrapping her arms around his neck in a fierce hug. "We did it!" Richter gasped in surprise and had to take a step backwards to rebalance himself, but he quickly recovered. Ruby felt his arms wrap around her back, pulling her into a hug. He gave her a quick squeeze then set her down, smirking and motioning his head for her to look behind him.

The red-cloaked huntress complied and she caught a flash of yellow before she found herself scooped up and pulled into a bone-cracking embrace, courtesy of her older sister.

"Are you okay? How's your leg?" Yang asked worriedly once she released Ruby from her iron grip.

"It's fine, I just have to be careful how much weight I put on it." Ruby reassured her older sister.

Blake was staring at Darion's body, "You really did a number on Darion Shiver."

Richter gave a small laugh in reply, "Yeah, might have overdone it a little though." He said, his voice sounding strained, he placed his left hand on his right shoulder, where Darion had cut him. Ruby noticed that the cut was shallower than she remembered. Were her eyes playing tricks on her? Or did Richter's altered form have some sort of healing ability?

"I can't believe that worked." Weiss said, rubbing her forehead with the back of her left hand to get the sweat off.

"Yeah." Richter agreed, turning to look at Ruby with a grin. "You've got one hell of a team Ruby."

Yang nodded in agreement, placing her hands on her hips, a wide smile on her face. "Yeah, we're pretty great."

Weiss smiled, folding her arms, "I'd like to think we're quite exceptional."

Ruby glanced at Blake to see her lips curled upwards slightly in a smile. She was always the quietest of the team, but the red-cloaked huntress could tell that her faunus teammate shared in their enthusiasm.

"All that's left now is to destroy the Sirensong." Ruby announced turning towards the pillar in the center of the room.

"We even got time to spare." Yang added.

The group began to make their way to the pillar. Out of the corner of her eye, Ruby noticed Richter falter a step, he quickly recovered, closing his eyes and rubbing his forehead with his left hand.

"You okay?" Ruby asked him, she didn't like seeing him transform, it seemed really….painful.

Richter looked at her, raising an eyebrow. "You're leg got sliced up bad and you're asking if I'm okay? How about you?"

"I'm fine, I know this wound will heal with time. You on the other hand, rip your face off to transform into a demonic monster with crazy powers, that's bound to have side effects." Ruby replied, giving him a stern look. "I haven't forgotten last night."

She saw her childhood friend look away in embarrassment. "Okay, point taken." He responded.

"What about last night?" Yang suddenly acquired, Ruby nearly jumped as she looked to her right and saw her elder sister looking at her suspiciously.

"Nothing." Both Ruby and Richter said at the same time, they gave each other a quick panicked look, neither expecting the other to have said anything. Slowly Ruby turned back towards Yang, her elder sister continued to stare suspiciously at them.

Yang's lips curled upward into a knowing smile. "Nothing huh." She shrugged, the smile still on her face. "Okay then."

Ruby mentally cringed, Yang knew something was up, no doubt she was hatching some elaborate scheme to get her to reveal what happened the night before. But under no circumstances could her older sister find out what happened between Richter and her last night. Especially the kiss, Ruby feared for the safety of Richter's face if Yang found out. She tended to be a little, protective. Ruby liked Richter's face, particularly if it was bruise-free.

Richter himself had continued on to the pillar, he got on his knees and began sliding his hands across the floor. The others watched him curiously while he worked. Ruby limped her way towards him.

"What are you doing?" The red-cloaked huntress asked.

Richter didn't look up. "There's a hidden generator under this floor somewhere, it keeps a force field up on the Sirensong as long as it's in that pillar, to protect it from any collateral damage." He explained. "We have to disable that first if we're to get to it."

Blake crossed her arms, "So, once Richter disables the force field, who wants to do the honors?"

Yang slammed her right fist into her left palm, an evil grin on her face. "I wouldn't mind smashing it."

"No."

Everyone turned towards Weiss, the way she had said that single word brooked no argument. "It's my family's fault that we're in this mess in the first place." The heiress stated, "A member of the Schnee family was responsible for creating the Sirensong." She drew her rapier, pointing it towards the pillar. "It should be a Schnee family member who destroys it, to atone for our mistakes."

Ruby was about to say something, but looking into Weiss' eyes she saw the conviction in them. Her partner needed this. The fact that so much trouble and so many people back in Vale were hurt, all for a device her father had funded must really be eating at her. Destroying the Sirensong would be closure for her white-haired friend.

Ruby silently nodded her approval to Weiss, who nodded back with a slight smile, waiting patiently for Richter to find the force field generator hidden in the floor. The mission was almost complete.

And then it all went wrong. So very wrong.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: This chapter is a little shorter than previous ones, but free time has been in short supply, so I figured I would put this out there now. I had a lot of fun writing the teamwork part of this fight and I hope it was as much fun to read. There is more to come in the next chapter, which I will try to get out within five to seven days, but no promises.**

 **Thank you for reading.**


	15. Shattered Worlds 15

**A/N: Soooo it was a little longer than 5-7 days, apologize for that, been really really busy and just couldn't get back around to work on this. But it's here now!**

 **Review Responses**

 **General Esdeath: If I had the free time I would love to take a crack at a crossover story. However, as it is now I barely have the time to get this one finished up. So I'm unable to fulfill this request, I'm sorry :(.**

 **Silvereagle2121: Glad I got your interest, hopefully when it concludes it will have been enjoyable for you.**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Weiss stood poised in front of the pillar, ready to deliver the final blow that would shatter the Sirensong and bring this latest adventure to a close. Ruby stood behind her along with the rest of her team, waiting with slight impatience as Richter tried to find the force field generator hidden in the floorboards near the pillar. They still had a good ten minutes, but Ruby would feel better if Richter found the damn thing already, it was nerve-wracking.

Suddenly, Ruby found herself on her right side, as an invisible weight slammed into her from her left. The rest of the group was floored in a similar fashion. Ruby recognized the force, an invisible push of aura, and it had come from where Darion's corpse was. The red-huntress' face paled, surely Darion couldn't be…

"No…." Richter whispered in disbelief, eyes wide in shock as he looked in that direction. Ruby followed his gaze to see Darion shakily on his feet.

The transformed psychopath was smoking heavily from the mortal blow Richter had given him across the chest. His black scaly flesh was charred and he was bracing himself against the western wall with his left hand. The stump where his right hand used to be also had its own pillar of dark smoke. Darion's breathing was labored, he looked like he was in no condition to fight.

And yet he was smiling like he had just won.

"….You won't stop me from my destiny…." Darion croaked out, smirking weakly. "….Richter. Did Cinder ever tell you there are many species of grimm still undocumented?..." A coughing fit doubled the psychopath over, and Ruby spotted a few drops of dark blood escaping from his lips. "….Grimm of huge size and power…the power to shatter kingdoms…."

Darion pulled a vial from his pocket. The vial was different than any Ruby had ever seen. Its bottom part was diamond-shaped and its contents contained an ebony fluid that matched the psychopath's current complexion. It was small enough to fit in the palm of his hand.

Darion smiled as he pulled the top off the vial. "….This contains the pure essence of such a grimm…." The psychopath quickly downed the contents before any of them could react.

"Shit…!" Ruby heard Richter exclaim and then they were all on their feet, unloading all the bullets from their respective weapons into Darion. Ruby saw the psychopath's body jerk around as it was riddled with dozens upon dozens of bullets. They had to annihilate Darion before that grimm essence took effect.

Another pulse of aura knocked Ruby clean off her feet and she was forced to dig Crescent Rose into the floor in scythe form to keep from being thrown away. She looked around and saw Richter and the rest of her team following suit, all but Yang who was able to somehow weather the blast on her feet. The pulse finally expired and Ruby landed softly, careful not to put excess weight on her injured leg. Her silver eyes locked onto Darion's form and she felt a cold shiver of dread run down her spine.

Bone-colored armor plates covered the psychopath's pectorals and abdominal muscles. The top half of his face was covered in the plating as well, two holes in the "Mask." Allowed Ruby and the rest to see Darion's jade-green eyes, which no longer had any pupils. The wings on his back were gone, replaced with more bony plating on his shoulders and neck and what appeared to be chains were wrapped around his hands and forearms.

"Should you really all be standing there gawking?" Darion asked, his voice as distorted as ever. "After all, this isn't quite godhood, not yet at least." He took a step forward, and Ruby noticed her teammates take an involuntary step backwards. "If I were you, I'd seriously consider praying to whatever deity you believe in…." He extended his left hand, palm facing the group. "….Because you'll meet them very soon."

A roar to Ruby's right drew her attention and she looked to see Richter peeling his face off, going into his altered state once more. He shifted Dyrnwyn into pistol-form and charged up a massive ball of aura, one that easily took up a third of the room. Ruby and the rest scrambled to get behind him, not wanting to be caught in the big blast that was to come.

"This time I'll destroy every bit of you Darion! Down to the last molecule!" Richter declared, he planted his feet and pulled the trigger.

The ground shook as the blast from Richter's pistol shot forth towards the monstrosity that was Darion Shiver. Ruby watched as the cylinder-shaped blast completely engulfed the transformed psychopath's body, washing over him and crashing into the western wall beyond. Several human-sized boulders were jarred loose from the impact and fell from the ceiling, thankfully none of them fell near Ruby or her team.

"Geez! Overkill much Richter?" Yang asked sardonically, lowering her left hand, which was shielding her face from any stray debris.

Richter's breath came in gasps. "I had to be sure."

Ruby was about to say something when she saw an outline in the smoke at Darion's position. The dust clouds dissipated, revealing the psychopath, barely a scratch on him. The red-cloaked huntress shook her head in disbelief, there was no way….Richter's blast nearly caved in the mountain…and his left hand was barely damaged….

What the hell kind of grimm essence was that?

"My, my." Darion spoke, waving his left hand as if he had just accidentally put it on a hot stove. "That one packed quite a kick Richter. It's like pins and needles on my hand."

"No way…." Richter breathed in utter disbelief. "….I put everything I had into that…."

Darion stopped fussing over his left hand to look at him. "Oh so you're done now? That's a real fucking disappointment. I thought you more capable than that." He raised his right hand, pointing it right at Ruby, who's silver eyes widened. "What a pity…."

Darion's biceps bulged and the air distorted in front of his palm. Ruby tried to raise Crescent Rose up to recoil shot away, but she knew she wouldn't make it in time. What sounded like an atlesian military cannon being fired was heard emanating from Darion's hand. Ruby held Crescent Rose in front of her and braced for impact as best as she could, but if Darion was strong enough now to take Richter's best attack in his altered form, she held little hope of surviving this hit. If only her damn leg wasn't injured….

A black blur suddenly materialized a few meters in front of the red-cloaked huntress. Ruby found herself looking into the orange glowing eyes of Richter. He was facing her, arms spread wide, his face set in determination. They locked eyes and for one single solitary second, time stood still.

Then the blood spewed between Richter's clenched teeth as the invisible blast of aura nailed him in his back. Ruby watched in horror as her childhood friend collapsed to his knees, a great deal of dark smoke billowing forth from his back. He would have fell onto his face if Ruby hadn't of caught him, wrapping her arms around his waist and holding him in a crouching position.

"Richter!" She screamed, voice full of concern. She felt the weight of his chin on her right shoulder and heard the hiss of pain that escaped his lips. "Richter hang in there!"

There wasn't any more time to check on her childhood friend's condition as Darion bent his knees and leapt high into the air, cratering the floor where he had leapt from. As he reached the height of his jump, Ruby realized with horror where he was intending to land. Right on top of her.

Tightening her grip on Richter's waist with her left arm, Ruby swiftly pointed Crescent Rose in front of her and fired a recoil shot, just barely escaping Darion's impact point as he landed. The shockwave from the landing sent the red-cloaked huntress spiraling out of control in the air and she landed hard on her right shoulder against the eastern wall, Richter in tow.

Ignoring the pain she was in, Ruby crouched down next to Richter's prone form. A large hole where his left shoulder blade should be was on his back. Black smoke was emanating from it. Ruby stared at the wound helplessly, she didn't know how much Richter's body changed in his altered form. Should she bandage it? Would he heal if given enough time?

"Richter." She said, trying to keep her voice calm, his eyes, which were clenched shut, popped open to look at her. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"….Not really…." He wheezed out.

Ruby shook her head, "There has to be something I can…."

"Ruby." He interrupted her, strength in his voice. "You and your team need to get out of here."

"No!" Ruby protested adamantly.

"He's right though." Darion spoke, interjecting into their conversation as he began walking towards them like a lion stalking its prey. "You really should be running."

A blast of Dust suddenly hit the psychopath on the right side of his face. Darion shrugged the shot off, turning to face the person responsible for the shot.

Yang reared her right fist back, the sound of Ember Celica reloading filling the room. "You leave them alone." She growled menacingly. Darion smiled in response.

The blonde huntress brought her right fist forward, firing another blast of Dust from her gauntlet. Darion swatted it away like a beachball with his left hand, turning to face Yang.

Blake rushed in on the psychopath's right flank, attempting a vertical slash with her sword. A corner of Darion's lip curled in disgust as he blocked the attack with the chains wrapped around his right forearm. He then immediately counterattacked by slamming the tip of his left foot into the faunus huntress' right temple. Fortunately for Blake, she made a clone to take the hit, flipping over Darion and landing at his back. She swung Gambol Shroud in a left-right horizontal arc, seeking to slice her enemy in half at the waist. However, with amazing quickness, Darion leapt over the swing, twisted around to face her, landed, and then buried his left fist into Blake's sternum, all in about one second. The force of the blow sent Blake rocketing away.

Yang immediately leapt in to take over, attacking Darion with a flurry of blows. Ruby frowned as she watched her sister and the psychopath fight. Yang was fighting with a fervor she hadn't seen before, Darion should be backpedaling, desperately trying to deflect her attacks, but he was completely calm, not moving an inch from his current spot. Ruby's gut instinct was sending alarm bells to her brain. Darion was reminding her of a coiled snake, and it was about to uncoil and strike.

The red-cloaked huntress continued to stay near Richter as she watched her sister and Darion continue to battle. Yang came forward with a left-right combo that the psychopath easily deflected by slapping the outside of her wrists. Her sister then lunged forward with a strong right hand and Ruby saw Darion's eyes flicker in surprise before blocking the punch with his forearms. Still, Yang's blow was powerful enough to knock him back a meter, it wasn't much, but it was something.

Yang followed through with a strike from her left fist, aimed at Darion's face. Almost casually, the transformed psychopath reached up and palmed her extended fist with his left hand. A shockwave shot through the entire room, but the two combatants were unmoved by it. However, Ruby noticed the look of complete astonishment on her sister's face. She hadn't expected Darion to block that, and so easily too.

Darion smiled, closed his left hand around Yang's left fist and yanked Ruby's sister forward and off-balance. He then readjusted his left hand's grip, latching on to her wrist, and with his right hand, he slammed his fist into Yang's left elbow.

Yang screamed in agony as the sound of her arm being broken resounded through the room. Ruby watched in horror as her sister's left arm limply fell to her side, bent at an awkward angle. Before anyone could properly react, Darion planted his left foot into her elder sister's sternum, sending her into the western wall.

"Yang!" Ruby screamed. Instinctively she tried to plant her feet in preparation to leap, but her right leg immediately shot pain through her in protest. She collapsed back down to her knees.

"Ruby…listen to me…" Richter pleaded. "….You have to run."

She was about to tell him that she couldn't leave them behind when she spotted Darion turn his sights on Weiss, who was still recovering from the shock of seeing Yang get brutalized. The psychopath bent his knees and then rushed toward the heiress, his heavy steps sending vibrations through the floor.

"Weiss! Look out!" Ruby shouted. The pale-haired huntress shook herself out of her shock. Seeing Darion barreling down towards her, she extended her right hand, a glyph appearing before it, and sent a barrage of blasts towards the transformed psychopath. All of the blasts hit, but Darion didn't seem to care, he shrugged them off like they were flies. Unfortunately for Darion, he had lost sight of the heiress for a couple of seconds when the blasts collided with him.

And that was all the time Weiss needed.

She came in fast from behind and above Darion, Myrtenaster reared back and ready to pierce through the back of his neck. Weiss thrust her sword forward, her aim was true, the tip of her sword hit the back of her opponent's neck….

….And abruptly broke in half.

Ruby could see her own disbelief reflected in Weiss' eyes. The flesh on her face suddenly rippled as Darion delivered a nasty right hook to the left side of her face. The heiress was sent flying into the southwestern wall with a sickening thud, when the smoke cleared, she lay motionless on the floor.

"You have to go…if you don't run now…you'll be killed as well!" Richter informed her, pulling himself up enough to lean against the eastern wall.

"I can't just leave you all here!" Ruby argued, tears forming in the corner of her silver eyes.

The sound of light footsteps drew her attention and she looked back towards Darion to see Blake dashing towards him. The look on the faunus huntress' face disturbed Ruby, it was the look of someone resigned to defeat, but determined not to go down without a fight. She didn't like that look, there had to be some way to beat Darion, but how? If she didn't figure it out soon, he would kill all of her friends.

The transformed psychopath snorted as he saw Blake running towards him. He decided to meet Blake halfway, racing towards her with his right arm held out to his side. He tried to clothesline the faunus huntress when he got to melee range, but Blake managed to block it with her sword, the blade depressingly unable to cut through his skin. Still, even though Blake blocked the attack, Darion had come forward with such force that it knocked her from her feet, sending her spine-first into the eastern wall, just to the left of Ruby and Richter.

Blake bounced off the wall, and suddenly Darion was above her, punching her between her shoulder blades with his left fist and knocking her face-first into the floor. Blake once again bounced off the surface, hanging a meter in the air with her body parallel to the ground. Darion swiftly landed to her left and delivered a savage punt to her left hip with his right foot. The faunus huntress was sent sailing to her right, flying past Ruby and Richter.

Amazingly, Ruby saw Blake trying to right herself in mid-air, even after all those punishing blows she was still trying to fight. For what must have been the hundredth time, Ruby cursed her injured right leg. If only she could join in fully.

Darion sprinted after Blake's sailing form, passing by Ruby and Richter as well. The red-cloaked huntress noticed that his right hand's fingers were curled and that his fingertips looked very sharp, like claws. He lashed out at Blake with his right hand, slashing at her face.

And his hand came back bloody.

Ruby winced hard as Blake's scream of agony filled the entire room. She looked towards her faunus teammate and covered her mouth with her hands in horror. Blake was curled up on her right side, hands covering her right eye. Large amounts of blood was flowing from it, dripping between her fingers and down her face. Darion had destroyed her right eye.

Horror turned to anger as Ruby grabbed Crescent Rose and fired at Darion's back. The special ammunition she had loaded earlier actually staggered the psychopath, who had to take a step forward to rebalance himself. Darion looked back at her, a smirk played upon his lips as he leapt high into the air and came down with both feet on Blake's abdomen, blood shot out from her mouth as he cratered the faunus huntress into the floor. She lay motionless as Darion turned back to look at Ruby, grinning widely, his feet still on Blake's abdomen.

"Get off of her!" Ruby shouted at him.

Darion's grin widened. "Make me."

Ruby was going to respond by shooting the bastard when a flash of blonde hair and fire appeared on his right. Darion turned in that direction just in time to receive an uppercut to his chin, the blow knocked him into the eastern wall, embedding him there. Ruby fixed her gaze on the person responsible for the sudden attack.

Yang stood tall, her eyes flaring red and her hair glowing a pale gold. Her right hand was clenched tight into a fist and although her left hand hung limply at her side, she looked like she could take on an army of grimm. Ruby's eyes lit up as she remembered Yang's semblance, she got stronger with each hit and with the hits Darion had already given her, it might make her strong enough to beat him. Hope surged through the petite girl, they could still win this.

With a battlecry, Yang leapt up to Darion, proceeding to punch him multiple times in the face, with her right hand. Each hit embedded him further into the wall. Yang punched the psychopath one last time, using everything she had. The crater Darion was embedded in widened exponentially from the final hit, the whole mountain felt like it shook as more debris collapsed from the ceiling. Ruby did her best to shield Richter with her body, as he was doing all he could to stay conscious at that point.

Yang back-flipped a safe distance away, landing near the center of the room.

"Ow…" Darion's voice sounded from his buried spot in the wall. "…You've got spirit kid, I admire that." He leapt out from the wall, landing in front of the pillar which housed the Sirensong. "But spirit alone won't be enough."

The two combatants charged each other, exchanging blows. Ruby was surprised to see that Yang was compensating quite well for having her left arm out of commission. If this had been a normal opponent she would have been fine, but Darion was not normal. Even with her semblance, he was still taking her strikes well, on the flip side Yang was actually withstanding Darion's attacks. And if Darion was unable to land a finishing blow, then Ruby's sister could theoretically become strong enough to overpower him.

Both Yang and Darion reared their right hands back for a big strike. They thrust their fists forward simultaneously, their knuckles colliding. Another shockwave resounded through the room and for a brief moment, Ruby thought they had reached a stalemate.

And then Yang's right gauntlet shattered into countless pieces.

Ruby watched helplessly as her sister was launched backwards, making a hole through the southern wall on her impromptu exit. Her brain was trying to process what she had just seen. The red-cloaked huntress had never seen her big sister get beat when she used her semblance, never. And now here this monstrous bastard stood, having not only decimated her sister, but her entire team as well.

Silver eyes scanned the room, looking at the motionless forms of her teammates, they finally came to rest on Richter, who was taking it in with a solemn expression, lips peeled back in a snarl. He growled in helpless frustration.

She shared in it, Darion was picking off her friends one by one and there was nothing she could do about it. She cursed her helplessness, not just from her injured leg, even if it was in good condition, she didn't know what more she could do that her friends haven't done. She racked her mind for a solution, but could find none. A cry of frustration escaped the red-cloaked girl's lips as she slammed her fists into the floor.

Everyone was going to die and there was nothing she could do about it.

Everyone.

And that's when Ruby felt it, an invisible force that surged through her body. Her vision erupted in white, and then there was nothing.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Richter shielded his eyes with his left forearm. The blinding light was digging painfully into his altered eyes, actually it was digging into his everything. It was as if his whole body was burning, what was with that light?

Mercifully, it dimmed and Richter lowered his forearm to be greeted by the sight of Ruby, standing on both legs, injured and uninjured. The next thing he noticed was that what looked like white steam was rolling off of her. As the short ex-huntsmen looked closer at his childhood friend he noticed the biggest change in Ruby of all.

Her usual silver eyes were glowing bright white. Excess aura was venting from two lazy trails from the corner of her eyes, her face was calm, a slight frown on her lips. She was staring directly at Darion, who was no longer smiling.

"What….the fuck…?" The transformed psychopath said. Ruby didn't answer, instead she took a step forward and suddenly in an eyeblink she was right in front of Darion, her right leg tucked in preparation of a kick. Darion slowly looked down at the petite girl, eyes wide in surprise.

And then Ruby extended her right leg.

It was as if Darion was launched by a catapult, he flew into the western wall, bouncing off of it and landing on his knees. Richter blinked again and this time Ruby was hanging in mid-air, her weapon shifted into gun-form and aimed at the transformed psychopath. Richter watched as white glowing aura transferred from her small body to Crescent Rose. Darion was barely registering that a girl that weighed about a hundred pounds just sent him across the room like he was a soccer ball when Ruby pulled the trigger. A spherical blast of aura about three meters in diameter spat from the petite girl's gun, slamming into Darion's chest with the force of a bullet train. An explosion of white fire ripped through the room's western wall and the transformed psychopath leapt from it, tiny white flames littered his entire body and dark smoke was steadily emanating from his charred form.

"Okay seriously, what the ….fuck!" Darion shouted in a pained voice, doing his best to pat out the white flames on his arms. Richter's eyes narrowed as he observed what was happening. Ruby's white fire was wrecking havoc on Darion, it was as if it was designed specifically for him. Or at least, the grimm side of him.

Coming up with a theory, Richter reverted to his human form, the skin regenerating on his body. Almost immediately the burning sensation he had felt on his entire body vanished. He was right, whatever Ruby's new power was, it was especially lethal to grimm, or beings similar. That meant she had Darion on the ropes.

Using a recoil shot, Ruby flew towards the battered Darion, who snarled at her. Richter blinked and Darion was taking a step back as dark smoke exploded from a slash wound at the base of his neck, located on the left side. Ruby was in a crouched position at his back, facing away from him in a finished motion for one of her scythe attacks. Darion covered the wound on his neck with his right hand and turned to face her. Richter blinked again, this time dark smoke burst forth from a deep slash wound in his right flank. Darion grunted in pain and frustration as he covered the new wound with his left hand. Richter couldn't help, but think that the psychopath looked like he was comically hugging himself.

If his childhood friend was finding joy in this she wasn't showing it. Her face had remained its neutral expression and it concerned him. It was almost as if she was possessed, her movements were completely different from before. Where did this power come from?

"I've had it with you Ruby Rose." Darion hissed, "I was going to play around a little while longer, torture your friends a bit, maybe hack off a limb or two, but not anymore! Your shitty little scythe and your stupid glowing eyes have pissed me off." He dropped into a fighting stance. "Now I'm just going to rip you to pieces!"

Darion rushed forward, swinging at Ruby with his claws in rapid succession. The same moves he had used to take out Ruby's team were ineffective against Ruby herself. To Richter, she almost seemed to be casually dodging them. Ruby kept her hands lowered, taking a step back now and then when Darion managed to get close to a clean hit.

"Damn you!" Darion roared in extreme annoyance. "Are you going to fight me or just keep dodging like a bitch!"

Richter blinked again, this time Ruby's right hand was stretched out and open. The short ex-huntsman switched his gaze to Darion, who's face was one of shock, he soon saw why. Buried into his left pectoral was Crescent Rose, the tip of the blade protruding out of his back. Richter couldn't believe what he was seeing, Ruby had always been fast, but this kind of speed was unheard of. What the hell was she?

Ruby closed the distance between herself and Darion at a normal walking pace. The transformed psychopath could only make pained choking sounds as he weakly tried to pull the scythe out of his chest. Ruby gripped the handle of her weapon and uttered one word with an eerie calm.

"Vanish."

Her grip then tightened on Crescent Rose and Darion found himself sliced in half from his left shoulder to his right hip.

Dark smoke went everywhere as both pieces of the transformed psychopath fell to the floor. Ruby then turned to look at Richter and the short ex-huntsman found he couldn't resist tensing up. Was this still the Ruby he knew? Could she sense the grimm part of him somehow? If she wasn't the same Ruby anymore then there was little he could do to defend himself. He would die.

She began walking towards him and Richter sighed and forced himself to relax. If he was going to die then at least it was by Ruby's hands, better than some stranger. Ruby blinked once and her glowing eyes suddenly became their normal silver again. Richter raised an eyebrow in confusion until he saw her eyes roll into the back of her head and she began to fall forward.

"Ruby!" He shouted her name, springing forward. He caught her before she could land unceremoniously on her face. The short ex-huntsman set her down on her back gently, cradling the back of her head with his right hand. Her breathing was shallow, but it was steady, good, the glowing eyes thing must have taken a lot out of her.

A sharp thought pierced through Richter's brain, one that demanded his attention. He set Ruby down and stood to his full height, wincing as pain shot through him from his back. His altered form had taken too much damage, using it any more would be dangerous. But if he was right, he wouldn't need it. Walking gingerly, Richter began heading towards Darion's body.

Dark smoke was everywhere from the two severed halves of the psychopath and Richter coughed harshly to try and keep it out of his lungs. A quick scan revealed what he was looking for, the top half of Darion's body. The psychopath wore a pained facial expression, with a little exhaustion mixed in. He looked like he was nearing death's door.

"….I can't believe it. Lost to a bunch of stupid kids, how fucking absurd….." Darion said softly, his usual intensity dampened.

"It's over Darion. No little concoction is going to save you this time." Richter declared.

Darion looked at him and laughed, which was soon followed up with a coughing fit, he took a deep breath before replying. "Over? This is just the beginning." His jade-green eyes narrowed. "There will be others Richter."

Richter scowled at the psychopath, in just a few short words he had let him know what was coming. Both he and Darion had been experiments of Cinder's and judging by what Darion had done here, the experiment was a success. Cinder would alter more people unless she was stopped and if they ever got as strong as Darion, well, they would have a serious problem on their hands. It was not a pleasant thought. Still, he wasn't about to give this bastard the pleasure of seeing him sweat.

"Maybe." Richter replied, moving to stand next to Darion's head. He shifted Dyrnwyn into sword-form, aiming the tip of the blade at Darion's left eye. "But at least you won't be one of them."

Richter plunged the sword through Darion's left eye. The psychopath made one last gurgled gasp before lying quiet, moments later his form dissolved, leaving no trace of him left. Richter took a deep breath and wiped his forehead. They had won, but as he looked around the room and saw the brutalized forms of Ruby and her team, he couldn't help, but feel the victory ring hollow.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: There is one more big scene I want to write, then the epilogue and the story will finally be finished. Hopefully I won't make you all wait too long before it's done.**

 **Thanks for reading!**


	16. Shattered Worlds 16

**A/N: It's finally here. After this one is the epilogue. I wanted to do more cliffhangers for this story, but I knew around the middle of February my free time would dwindle immensely and felt that wouldn't be fair to readers to have to wait for an extended period of time. Hopefully it was worth the wait!**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

The sound of the force field around the Sirensong powering down filled Richter's ears and he allowed himself a small smile of triumph. He had finally found the damned floorboard the generator was hidden under, one quick slash from Dyrnwyn was all it took to destroy it. Now there was nothing to protect the device. Richter shifted his weapon into pistol-form, taking aim at the small barrel-shaped object designed to bring a horde of grimm down on people's heads. This device was too powerful, too strong to be trusted with anyone, it had to be destroyed.

And yet, Richter found he couldn't pull the trigger.

There was only a precious few minutes left until the device activated, but the short ex-huntsman found himself hesitating. Cinder's words once again reverberated through his brain, if he brought a horde of grimm onto himself and ate them all, he would evolve into a being that wouldn't be hindered by the hunger. He wouldn't have to suffer the excruciating pains and be forced to consume the filthy beasts anymore. All he had to do was let the Sirensong activate. Ruby and her entire team were down at the moment, no one could stop him. It would be so easy.

Richter holstered his weapon instead, and reached into the space in the pillar that the Sirensong was attached. With a sharp tug of his right hand, he yanked the device out, ripping out the wires that kept it hooked up to the machine. The Sirensong was deactivated, the threat of a horde of grimm overrunning the place was now gone.

Richter found himself staring at the small barrel-shaped object resting in the palm of his right hand. The plan was to destroy it, but that had been Ruby's plan. He would have went along with it too, but that was before they had battled Darion. Seeing the psychopath lay waste to them was a wakeup call for the short ex-huntsman. He didn't have enough power to deal with these new threats. As much as he hated to admit it, Darion was right. He would not be the last altered he would see, and if they were all as strong as him, he was sorely outclassed.

He glanced back at Ruby's supine form, looking almost serene in her unconscious state. It was almost unbelievable that a minute ago she had taken down a vicious psychopath grimm-hybrid. That glowing eyes power she had used, what the hell was it? She had never used anything like that before at any time. Whatever it was it was especially lethal to grimm or people who were infused with grimm essence. She could have killed him at any time with a power like that, and that concerned him deeply.

Still feeling indecisive, Richter pocketed the Sirensong, he could decide at a later time whether he wanted to destroy it or not. It was a dangerous tool, but it also might be the key to giving him the power to stop any future experiments that Cinder threw at him or Ruby. He could actually protect her, unlike his failure to do so against Darion.

A groan escaped Ruby's lips and she began to stir. Richter quickly ran to her side as her silver eyes fluttered open. Ruby's huntress instincts kicked in and she immediately went on full alert, she shot upright like a bolt and Richter had to grip her shoulders tightly to stop her.

"Easy easy." He soothed, "Take it slow." She made eye contact with him and he felt her relax.

"What?" Ruby started, looking disoriented, "What happened? Where's Darion?" Richter looked at her carefully, could it be she didn't remember what happened? Was that possible?

He pointed to the spot he had executed the psychopath, there was still a spot of blood when he had stabbed him in the eye. "There."

"Wow." Ruby breathed, looking where he pointed. "There's nothing left of him." She returned her gaze to him. "Did you do that?"

"What?" Richter responded, caught off-guard. "No, you did." He informed her. So it was true, Ruby was unaware of the power she had used. He didn't know whether to be scared or thankful.

The petite girl's eyebrows furrowed as she delved into her thoughts. "But the last thing I remember was looking at my friends and getting angry. There was this flash of white and then…" She brought her right hand to her forehead, rubbing it. "…Nothing."

Richter rubbed the back of his head uneasily. "Yeah. Your uh, eyes got all glowy, and then you proceeded to kick the shit out of Darion."

"But how?" Ruby demanded, looking just as lost as he felt. "I don't understand…."

Richter shook his head, "You're asking the wrong person. I have no clue how you suddenly had the strength to defeat him." He told her, giving her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "All I can say is that you saved our lives."

That brought a smile to Ruby's lips a smile that warmed his cold heart to see. "Yeah, at least there's that."

Richter stood up, holding his right hand out to Ruby. "Come on, let's grab the others and get out of here."

Ruby took his hand. "Right." As Richter pulled her to her feet, he immediately noticed that she was standing on both of her legs just fine. Did her glowy eyes power heal her injured leg? It was the only thing he could think of. Ruby glanced over at the pillar in the center of the room, the one that had housed the Sirensong. "Did you destroy it?"

Her question caught him off-guard and he averted his gaze. "Yeah, it's gone." He looked back at her, his lips curving upwards into a smile, "We did it Ruby." Her silver eyes continued to stare at him, piercing into his very being. Was she not buying his lie? That wasn't good.

Ruby's face finally relaxed, "Yeah, we did." She said, returning his smile. Richter felt his heart twinge at the sight of it. She really was too damn cute. "I need to check on my friends, then we can get out of here."

"Best thing you've said all day." Richter replied, Ruby passed by him on his left, heading for Weiss first. The short ex-huntsman let out a sigh, raising his head and closing his eyes. There was nothing else in his way, after resting up, he was going to track down Cinder and make her pay.

The familiar sound of Crescent Rose shifting into scythe form reached Richter, and he opened his eyes and glanced down to see the blade an inch from his throat.

"Hand over the Sirensong, Richter." Ruby demanded. He could tell by her voice that she was not kidding around.

"What are you talking about?" He asked, feigning innocence.

"Don't try that with me. I've known you for years. I can tell when you're lying to me, you always break eye contact when you do." She told him.

Richter sighed, busted because Ruby knew him too well. Things were about to get complicated.

"I can't." The short ex-huntsman answered.

"What do you mean? The Sirensong is dangerous!" Ruby exclaimed.

"I know that." Richter said, "But it's the only way to free myself from the hunger."

"No." Ruby quickly disagreed, "There has to be another way."

Richter's eyebrows furrowed in frustration, "Another way could take years to find. Years of suffering that I would have to endure!" He cast a sideways glance behind him, looking right into Ruby's silver eyes. "I'm done Ruby, I don't want to feel this excruciating pain anymore."

"Richter." Ruby started, "Think carefully about what you are doing. Innocent people would get killed!"

"Not if I go someplace deserted." Richter responded.

Ruby's eyes narrowed, "And what about you? What would happen to you when you consumed that many grimm? I doubt the hunger would be the only thing to disappear. Are you willing to risk that?" Her expression softened. "Are you willing to risk losing yourself?"

Richter stared at her in silence as he mulled the question over. Was he really able to risk losing himself to end the hunger? What did he stand to lose? He was staring right at it.

Ruby.

As he gazed into her silver orbs he couldn't lie to himself, he was deeply attached to the petite girl, enough to where he was now thinking over his decision again. If he did what she asked, and handed over the Sirensong, what then? Ruby had accepted what he had become, but what about the rest of the hunters in Vale? Even if they did somehow tolerate his presence as an altered being, it would be next to impossible for them to accept him completely. He would be shunned as a freak, it would be a miserable experience, made even worse because they would never allow him to become a huntsman as he was now. The dream that he had lost a year ago would be constantly dangled in front of his face, mocking him, and it was something he didn't think he could bear.

The short ex-huntsman's face set in determination, no, there was no going back, he was a fool to think otherwise. "I am." He answered Ruby's question, he would indeed risk everything to get rid of the hunger.

"Well I'm not." Ruby responded, her eyes became pleading and Richter felt his heart twist in his chest. "Don't do this Richter, please."

But as much as it pained him to do this to his childhood friend, he had to do it. He had to end the hunger, at all costs. "And if I do?" He challenged.

Ruby's expression hardened and in one swift second, she had transformed from cute little petite girl to vicious warrior. "I am a huntress, I will do what I must to protect the people."

Richter narrowed his eyes at her, secretly grateful she had such a scary look on her face. It would make it easier to fight her. "So be it."

He fired Dyrnwyn, still in pistol-form and still holstered on his left hip, the shot simultaneously knocked Ruby away and sent him into the air. Richter landed quickly after a few somersaults, turned, and dashed towards Ruby, who had just managed to land on her feet. She quickly took to the air again, shifting Crescent Rose into gun-form and firing off multiple shots.

Richter shifted his weapon to sword-form and deflected them all, his pace never slowing down. When he was less than a dozen meters from Ruby, he lunged forward, the tip of his blade aimed for his childhood friend's midsection. She managed to block the hit with her weapon, but the force of the blow knocked her back half a dozen meters. Both combatants landed, Ruby shifted her weapon into scythe form and the two immediately started laying into each other. A flurry of strikes and parries were exchanged between the two.

Nostalgia hit Richter like a wrecking ball. This reminded him so much of the sparring matches they used to do, supervised by her uncle Qrow. Except this time, they were not holding back, with the way they were going, one of them could get killed and there was no Qrow to stop them this time. Richter felt his heart grow melancholic, never in a million years did he imagine he would be fighting Ruby like this. She was his best friend, they were supposed to graduate from Beacon together, but that dream was fleeting. It was all so depressing and as he locked eyes with Ruby, he saw his feelings mirrored in her silver eyes as well. Neither would let their personal feelings get in the way of their goals, no matter how hard it was.

Ruby slashed at Richter's neck with Crescent Rose, but the short ex-huntsman managed to duck under the swing and slam his left palm into her abdomen. The blow doubled the red-cloaked huntress over and Richter followed through by making a slash at the back of Ruby's neck. She managed to avoid it by rolling backwards. Richter tried another swing, this one horizontal and aimed at her esophagus, but Ruby blocked it with her scythe. The two combatants strained their weapons against each other, but neither gave ground.

"I can't get my revenge on Cinder with this hunger always hounding me!" Richter snarled.

"So this is your alternative!? To take a self-destructive path?!" Ruby responded.

"It's not self-destructive if it cures that which ails me!"

Richter suddenly felt his legs fly out from under him as Ruby swept them out with her right leg. The short ex-huntsman landed on his back with a grimace, damn was she fast. He caught a glimpse of Ruby raising her scythe above her head in preparation of driving it into his chest. Seeing this, Richter rolled to his left, narrowly avoiding getting impaled in the heart.

He rolled to his feet and was almost immediately knocked off of them as he was hit in the chest with a sniper bullet, courtesy of Ruby. It knocked him backwards and into the air, but thanks to his aura, it didn't pierce his skin, still hurt like hell though. That was about to be the least of his worries as he saw her monopod her scythe and reload her weapon. He could do nothing, but watch as she pulled the trigger a second time.

This one caught Richter in the left shoulder, sending him into a spin as gravity caught hold of him and pulled him mercilessly to the steel floor. Dazed, Richter watched as Ruby ripped her scythe out of the ground and took a step forward.

Then an orange circular glyph activated next to her feet, right where he had landed when she tripped him.

Surprise was colored all over Ruby's face as the mine he had planted exploded, sending her tumbling away from him. She landed hard on her left shoulder, sliding across the floor while her tattered red cloak billowed past her boots. She came to a stop after a couple of meters.

The two fighters rose to kneeling positions, breathing heavily. Richter was holding his left shoulder with his right hand while Ruby was putting her weight on Crescent Rose. The two glared at each other from across the room, but the glares weren't filled with anger, not quite.

"You call eating a horde of grimm a cure?" Ruby questioned. "Look at what Darion turned into just drinking that grimm essence!"

Richter scowled at her. "I'm not Darion."

Ruby scowled back. "You're right. You're supposed to be better than him."

"I AM BETTER!" Richter roared, a nerve had been struck with him and he charged forward, Dyrnwyn in sword-form.

Ruby mirrored his action and the two combatants lashed out with their weapons. Their attacks bounced off of each other, deflecting them harmlessly away from their targets. Momentum carried the two fighters past each other, and Richter tried to turn around and prepare himself to charge again when he saw the pointy end of Ruby's scythe headed straight for his face. Instinctively, the short ex-huntsman brought his sword up, managing to parry the blow, but just barely, the tip of the scythe dug into his left cheek slightly, drawing blood. He grit his teeth, she was really serious about stopping him.

The red-cloaked terror that was his childhood friend fired a shot, half of a second after he had parried her attack. The recoil gave her a little extra boost and she used it to shove Richter off of his feet, sending him sailing backwards, body a meter from the floor and parallel to it. He couldn't believe it, when had Ruby become so strong? After traveling backwards about two dozen meters, Richter somersaulted backwards to slow his momentum, stabbing Dyrnwyn into the floor to further slow his backwards progress. Just as he was sliding to a stop, Richter saw rose petals out of the corner of his eye and looked to his left to see Ruby there, Crescent Rose reared back and ready to cleave him in half while he was still hanging in mid-air.

They made eye contact and in that moment, for Richter, time slowed to a crawl. Their tattered cloaks billowed in the wind they generated from their swift moves and their facial expressions were that of fierce warriors. If a stranger looked at them now, they would have never known that the two fighters had been close since childhood. In Ruby's silver eyes, Richter saw the resolve to not back down, something he was feeling himself. He wondered if this was what happened when an unstoppable force met an immovable object. However, they weren't forces or objects, they were human. One of them had to give.

Ruby swung her scythe at Richter, aiming for his torso. Moving quickly, He released his grip on his sword, tucked his head and performed a swift forward somersault. The blade of Crescent Rose's scythe came so close to the back of Richter's neck as he performed the evasive maneuver that the short ex-huntsman swore she sheared off some hairs there.

Richter landed smoothly on his feet, grabbing Dyrnwyn once more with his right hand and shifting the weapon to its pistol-form. He quickly aimed the gun at his opponent and fired. Ruby was able to bring her scythe back just in time to block the shot with her weapon handle. She stumbled back a step and then immediately brought her scythe forward in an overhead slash. Richter was forced to leap backwards to avoid getting a blade through the top of his skull. As his feet touched solid ground, the short ex-huntsman dashed forward and socked Ruby right in the jaw with his left fist. The punch snapped Ruby's face to her left, but rather than try to face forward again, the petite huntress twisted with the punch. Propping herself above Crescent Rose's handle with her left hand, Ruby spun with the punch, twisting her body around and delivering a massive boot to Richter's face.

The short ex-huntsman grunted in pain as he was sent backwards yet again. Anger surged within him and he righted himself in mid-air enough to take aim with his pistol, generate a basketball-sized ball of aura and fire it. Ruby countered by shifting her weapon into gun-form and firing a bullet into his aura ball, detonating it. Performing a backwards somersault, Richter landed in a crouching position, pistol aimed at Ruby, who had her gun pointed at him as well. He frowned, another stalemate, they were getting nowhere.

"I'm not threatening any villages, or Vale or any of the other three kingdoms." Richter said. "All I want is to stop living in so much pain and to make sure Cinder is a rotting corpse."

Ruby frowned at him. "Liar, that can't be all that you want."

"It is." He reaffirmed.

"And you truly believe this is the only way to stop your hunger affliction?" She inquired.

Richter spat out some blood that had pooled inside his mouth before answering. "The only one that comes to mind."

Ruby responded by activating her semblance, rose petals were flying everywhere as she flitted back and forth as a red blur, forcing Richter's eyes to work overtime in order to keep track of her. He fired multiple rounds from his pistol, but none of them ever hit their mark, his shots were fast and accurate, but Ruby's speed was just too much.

The red blur suddenly stopped its evasive tactics and shot forward like a bullet, coalescing back into the familiar form of the petite red-cloaked huntress. Richter doubled over as Ruby planted her feet into his gut. She springboarded off of him, increasing the distance between them. While still in mid-air, Ruby reloaded her gun and shot a powerful explosive shot at the short ex-huntsman. Too off-balance to attempt to dodge, Richter crossed his arms in front of him as the explosive shot detonated just a meter in front of him. The force of the explosion sent him tumbling backwards, where he bounced a few times before sliding to a stop on his belly.

With every hit he took, Richter found himself getting more and more frustrated. Was he really so weak that he couldn't fight Ruby on equal footing when she wasn't using her new power? Did he really get swatted away like an insignificant pest by Darion, even after he had used his strongest move? What the hell good was he? How the hell could he take revenge when he was in such a pitiful state? It was pathetic and as he saw the sympathy in Ruby's silver eyes, his anger spiked.

"Don't give me that look." He hissed at her. "You think everything will work out, that it will all be a happy ending, like those stories Yang used to tell you." He got himself back up to his feet. "It's naïve Ruby, to think like that." Black-white aura began to encase Dyrnwyn as he shifted it into sword-form. He saw Ruby drop into a defensive stance, she planned to weather his initial strike and take him out with the counterattack.

She would be disappointed.

He dashed towards her, swinging his sword in an overhead slash. Ruby blocked it, but with the added power of his aura behind the swing, the force of the blow staggered her. "Reality is different." He stated, hitting her with another overhead swing, she managed to bring her weapon handle up to block it again, but it staggered her even more. "It's cruel!" Another swing. "It's unfair!" Another swing, "It's unforgiving!" A fifth swing knocked Ruby onto her back, but she quickly rolled backwards to her feet. "I had dreams of becoming a huntsman that surpassed my father…." He continued, closing the distance between them once more and rearing his sword back for a horizontal swing. "…..And look what reality did to ME!"

Richter emptied his lungs in a fierce roar as he horizontally slashed at Ruby's throat. She was still getting her footing so the red-cloaked huntress raised the bottom end of Crescent Rose up to parry the blow. For half a second, it held against Richter's glowing black sword, and then the blade sliced through it, cutting through the bottom third of the scythe's handle. Dyrnwyn was deflected from its original path, instead cutting into Ruby's abdomen. She grunted in pain and hastily leapt backwards, creating some distance between them, her left arm holding her gut as she fell to her knees.

He watched as Ruby removed her left arm to examine the wound and felt a mixture of relief and annoyance when he saw the wound was shallower than expected. His conflicted thoughts were really doing a number on him and he was pretty sure the same went for Ruby. Neither one of them wanted to fight each other, but at the same time their goals forced them to. Being simple thirteen year olds hanging out in Signal seemed so far away now.

"What's it going to take to get through that thick skull of yours?" Ruby said crossly, "You're not a monster or a weapon, you're a person!" She activated her semblance and charged at him, running tight circles around the short ex-huntsman.

Richter saw the glint of metal, trusting his training and reflexes, he struck out with Dyrnwyn, parrying the blindingly fast slashes Ruby was sending his way. He defended well, blocking many of her strikes, but some were getting through. He could feel the bite of Crescent Rose as it sliced at his aura, some hits penetrating through to graze him. Small cuts and gashes began to appear on his arms, legs and torso as more and more of Ruby's strikes hit home.

"You're a person I've known most of my life!" Ruby continued while still hammering him with blows. "You're Richter Bremen!"

"Stop!" Richter roared, growing tired of his predicament, the short ex-huntsman stabbed the floor and activated his semblance.

Everything within a six meter radius of him exploded and Ruby was sent straight up into the air, petite body parallel to the ground and facing the floor. The short ex-huntsman leapt up, positioned himself just above his petite friend, somersaulted, and brought his right foot down in a fierce axe kick that connected with the base of her spine. Ruby fell back to the floor at a very accelerated rate, slamming belly-first into the ground and bouncing back up a meter. Richter landed in front of her and extended his left palm so that it was inches in front of her surprised face. He slammed a pulse of aura into her forehead, sending her tumbling towards the north wall.

The short ex-huntsman took off at a swift pace, wanting to close the distance before his opponent got her bearings. Lucky for him, she seemed slow to get up this time, only managing to get to a crouching position before he was in melee range. He spun like a top once to build momentum and then connected with a vicious sidekick to the left side of Ruby's head, sending her tumbling to her right.

"I can't be Richter Bremen anymore Ruby! No matter how much I want to! I just can't!" Richter shouted, voice cracking from the surplus of emotion he was starting to feel.

He took a few running steps and leapt high into the air, intending to bring his blade down on one of her legs, to prevent her from trying to pursue him. If he did that, he could escape without seriously hurting Ruby and proceed with his plans. It was a win-win.

So caught up in his thoughts on what he was going to do after the battle, he forgot to focus on the present. As Richter refocused, he didn't see the downed body of Ruby, but an elongated red blur rocketing up towards him, heading straight for his unprotected chest. The short ex-huntsman's vision blurred for a moment as Ruby slammed into his torso, and he was sent flying towards the eastern wall, landing hard once on his spine, bouncing, then crashing onto his left side.

The red blur landed and coalesced back into Ruby's familiar form. Richter tried to rise up to his feet to continue the fight, but found much to his dismay that his body was sluggish to respond. He redoubled his efforts, but found he could only get to a crouching position. He couldn't believe it, was he really going to lose again?

Richter looked up to see Ruby standing as tall as her short frame would allow her, damaged Crescent Rose held firmly in her right hand. He expected her to look victorious, to be smiling at having turned the tide in their battle. But all he saw in her silver eyes was sadness and regret, and something else, something he couldn't quite place.

"You are Richter Bremen. Nothing you say or do will change that for me." Ruby said softly, "You're someone very important to me, someone I refuse to let wreck their life."

Through sheer willpower, Richter stabbed his sword into the ground and used it to pull himself back to his feet. "My life is already wrecked, Ruby, you need to accept that and let me go."

"I can't." She replied. "I will stop you on this dark path you want to take in any way I can."

"You will fail."

"We'll see."

The two combatants raised their weapons into combat stances, glaring at each other from across the room. Nostalgia struck Richter again and he was reminded on how many of their duels at Signal ended this way. It always came down to the wire and he had had as many wins against her as losses. Just like back then, he wasn't sure who would come out of this last charge the winner.

With a lot of effort, Richter put one foot in front of the other, after a few steps he went into a full-on sprint, Ruby mirrored his action. They raced towards each other, closing the distance between themselves rapidly and lashing out with their weapons using all of their strength. The two fighters collided like two bullet-trains crashing head on at full speed. In the blink of an eye, they struck out with their respective attacks and slid past each other.

For a long moment, Richter stood with Dyrnwyn outstretched in the aftermath of his strike. Blood dripped from the blade, but how deep of a wound did he actually inflict? Attacks like these happened so fast, it took a few moments for the body to catch up. It was then he'd know if he'd won or lost the exchange.

A small sharp pain made itself known to Richter, coming from his chest area. He winced, guess she caught him with a glancing blow, not a big deal. Another moment passed and the sharp pain magnified until Richter's whole chest felt like it was on fire. Slowly, he lowered his gaze to his chest, to see his shirt begin to rapidly get stained with his own blood. He felt his legs give out and he collapsed to his knees.

He had lost.

Richter wanted to be angry, he wanted to be frustrated, but he was now too weary to do even that. The short ex-huntsman's body was finally giving out after all the fighting he had done today. He felt himself begin to fall forward, but there was nothing he could do about it. He didn't even have the strength to keep from falling on his face.

Suddenly his progress to the floor was halted as he fell on something warm. The scent of strawberries filled his nostrils and Richter's eyes widened in recognition. A glimpse of a tattered red cloak in front of him was all the confirmation Richter needed on who it was.

Ruby was on her knees as well, hugging him, her arms wrapped around his torso. The short ex-huntsman's chin was resting on her left shoulder, his arms hanging limply at his sides. Richter's dark-brown eyes took in the scene in complete disbelief, she was completely open to attack, what was she thinking!?

"There is a better way than this Richter, there has to be." Ruby spoke softly, almost whispering into his ear.

"Ruby…" He started, she hugged him tighter.

"I know you're suffering and I know it's unbearable." She continued, "But please, let's try other solutions first."

"Ruby…." He tried again.

"Give Vale a chance, they might be able to come up with something."

"I…."

"Please." She pleaded, "Just try, for me?"

The tone of her voice, stirred something within Richter. She sounded like she was in such pain, was he really affecting her that much? The frustration he had felt began to be replaced with guilt. Had he been so blinded by the suffering the hunger inflicted that he had failed to see that he was making her suffer? Was this what Yang had been talking about the day before?

Richter let out a long sigh, relaxing into her embrace, it felt good. "Always so stubborn aren't you?" He said light-heartedly. "Fine, I'll do it. For you."

She squeezed his torso in response. "We'll find a way to stop your suffering, I promise."

"Yeah…"

They sat like that for a long handful of moments, savoring the closeness. Richter would have lost consciousness right then and there, but a strange sound could be heard from above him. Curiosity getting the better of fatigue, he glanced upwards, towards the source of the strange sound.

And the color drained from his face.

"Ruby…." He said, his worried tone causing her to drop the embrace and look at him carefully. "….Look above us."

She complied and he saw her pale as well. "Oh no…"

Above them, at the room's ceiling, dark fluid was beginning to seep through. Dark fluid that looked a lot like grimm blood. Droplets began falling from the cracks in the ceiling, each one the size of a car, as they landed they didn't pool onto the floor, but rather transformed into grimm.

"Shit…" was all Richter could think to say at the situation developing before him.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: Find out how it ends next time!**


	17. Shattered Worlds 17

**A/N: This is it. The final chapter of this story. If you have been reading the whole thing then I want to thank you for sticking with it this far.**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

The ceiling was bleeding and the blood was forming into more grimm. Richter repeated that in his mind to see if it made more sense, it didn't. If they didn't move soon, the soulless creatures would overwhelm them.

As if on cue, a pile of boulders fell down on top of their current room's exit. The large rocks blocked their only way out. If Richter had the strength, he would have ran a hand through his hair and let out an exasperated sigh. Of course they were in the worst-case scenario, nothing ever goes right.

Ruby's eyebrows furrowed in concern. "You wouldn't happen to have any secret escape tunnels or anything would you?"

"No escape tunnels." He answered, searching his brain frantically. Gena Celvic had a contingency plan in case the entrance caved in, but he couldn't remember it exactly. "But there might be something." He added.

Richter looked around, the entire room designed to trap grimm once the Sirensong had lured them in, was a mess. The scars of their battles were all over and there was no standing furniture to be seen. Whether it be tables, chairs or other Dust-powered equipment. He found what he was looking for in the northwestern section of the room, Gena's laptop, lying on the floor. If it still worked….

He pointed out the laptop to Ruby. "If that laptop is still operational, then we might have a chance." Richter went to stand, but found that he was having a bit of trouble, when did his body get so heavy? He saw Ruby reach out a helping hand out of the corner of his eye, but he grabbed her wrist to stop her. "I'll be fine, your friends need more help than me." He told her. "Get them over to that laptop as fast as possible."

Ruby didn't look convinced, worry was apparent in her silver eyes, but she nodded nonetheless. "Okay." And with that she took off, leaving rose petals in her wake.

Finally getting to his feet, Richter began limping towards Gena's laptop. The short ex-huntsman's chest burned from the wound Ruby had given him. Blood flowed freely from it, but he paid it no mind. All he had to do was last long enough to get everyone to safety.

Some of the grimm began converging on him. Even in his weakened state, Richter was able to dispatch them swiftly with Dyrnwyn. Still, for every grimm he was forced to slay, it delayed him from reaching his goal, and his waning strength was very finite.

After what seemed like hours, but was probably less than a minute, Richter reached Gena's laptop. Dropping to his knees, Richter quickly turned the tiny computer upright, his dark eyebrows furrowed in concern as he saw the screen was partially shattered. If the laptop was broken then they were screwed.

The sound of boots landing behind him drew Richter's attention and he turned around to see Ruby gently drop Weiss' unconscious form near him. The heiress looked like hell, rips and tears in her clothes, bruises on her pale skin, and a thin trail of blood running from the top of her forehead down to her chin. Ruby hastily took off in another shower of rose petals, slicing grimm in half as she made a beeline for Blake. She returned with her faunus teammate just as fast, setting her next to Weiss. Richter cringed at the sight of Blake's bloody socket where her right eye should be. She would never be the same.

"I don't see Yang!" Ruby shouted in distress. Richter remembered when he had last seen the blonde huntress. Darion had knocked her through the room's exit.

"With the way Darion hit her, she probably got knocked completely out of the mountain. She should be safe, well from whatever is in here at least." He informed her.

"You're sure?" She asked him.

Richter was already typing furiously on the laptop. "As sure as I can be at the moment, we have our hands full now." As if to emphasize his point, several grimm began approaching them growling and snarling at them. "Keep them off me while I work on this thing."

Ruby went to work, slicing grimm to shreds with Crescent Rose. She was a red blur as she flitted from grimm to grimm, leaving them a smoking ruin in their wake. Still, as many as she killed, just as more popped up and Richter noticed with growing nervousness that the black blood from the ceiling was starting to drip more frequently.

Ruby blurred back into place behind Richter, gripping her scythe tightly, "Richter, I don't want to bother you but…"

He grit his teeth as the laptop gave him another error message. "I know! I'm working on it!" He said in a highly stressed tone. "Trying to remember what password out of thirteen is the right one."

Ruby shifted her weapon into gun form, firing a few rounds into a pack of grimm. "Remember faster! We're running out of time!"

Richter growled, "I'll throw my brain at you and you can pick it for the right password! Will that help?" He snapped.

"I don't know it might!" She snapped back.

Richter typed in another password, error. He typed in another and got the error message once more. He felt his palms get sweaty, silently cursing Gena for having so many passwords for so many different things. One of these damn passwords had to work!

A sudden affirmative beep sounded from the console and Richter's eyes widened in disbelief, he found the right one! "Got it!" He shouted to Ruby, "Regroup on your friends! It's time to leave!"

"Okay!" Ruby said, she fired a few more rounds and maneuvered herself to stand near Weiss and Blake's unconscious forms. She was in position.

Richter smiled sadly and pressed the button to activate the escape pod.

Ruby and her friends became encased in a translucent sphere, it looked like glass, but it was stronger than steel. This escape pod was designed to survive a large grimm attack and was meant for an alternative means of escape if someone who wasn't altered got trapped in their current room. In a very short time, a rocket embedded in a disc-shaped platform on the bottom of the pod would launch Ruby and her team to safety through a secret passage in the southwestern part of the ceiling. That is, if the passage was still intact.

"Richter!?" Ruby exclaimed, noticing with great alarm that Richter was standing outside of the pod.

He gave her the best reassuring smile he could, which wasn't great. "Someone has to make sure that thing spawning all of these grimm doesn't awaken, I'm sorry Ruby."

If what Gena had told him was true, this thing sleeping in the mountain had the potential to bring the city of Vale to its knees. He couldn't let that happen for two reasons, one was so many innocent lives would be lost and the other was because it was Cinder's big goal. He couldn't let that arrogant bitch get what she wanted.

"Don't you dare do this!" Ruby shouted, "Get in here right now!"

"It's too late." Richter replied, "The pod can't be reopened once the launch sequence has engaged."

"Then abort it!" Ruby quickly responded, when he didn't move to comply with her wishes, she slammed her tiny fists into the side of the pod. "Damn it Richter! Abort the launch sequence!"

The short ex-huntsman's eyebrows furrowed in sadness. "I can't."

Ruby slammed her fists into the side of the pod once more, tears beginning to form in the rim of her eyes. "I'm not leaving you behind again!"

A gentle smile played across Richter's lips as he placed his right hand on the pod's wall, over the same spot Ruby had her left hand. "You never left me behind in the first place."

She clenched her eyes shut and shook her head furiously, as if doing so would deny the inevitable outcome they both knew was coming. "This isn't goodbye!" She reopened her eyes and as Richter looked at them he felt his resolve temporarily weaken, he hated doing this to her, but he'd rather she live. "Richter please. Just abort the launch sequence!"

"If I do that, we all die." He placed his forehead onto the pod's wall. "Vale is going to need you in the near future, so you have to live."

Ruby mirrored his action, their foreheads would have been touching if not for the escape pod's translucent wall. "Why?" She asked softly, her voice breaking, a single tear ran down her right cheek. "Why is it always you that has to make the sacrifice?"

"Because I'm the one with the least to lose." He answered her gently. "Thank you, for not being afraid of me."

"How could I ever be afraid of you?"

Her response warmed his heart. "Stay strong." He said to her and with that he moved away from the escape pod. Richter looked at Ruby's face, doing his best to commit it to memory as best as he could. Something odd swelled in his chest, he wasn't quite sure what it was, but it was warm and it felt like it was threatening to burst out of his chest. Words began to form at the tip of his tongue and before he knew it he blurted out something he couldn't believe he'd ever say.

"I love you, Ruby Rose."

The last thing he saw was Ruby's silver eyes widen in shock, and then the escape pod launched. A circular hole opened up in the room's ceiling and the pod rocketed through it. Richter watched it go with a small smile on his face. It was selfish of him, to admit his feelings to her right before sending her away, but he needed to let her know before marching to his death. Richter felt strangely at ease after his impromptu confession, he hadn't even realized he was bottling that in for so long. Invisible strength filled his body. He wasn't ready to admit defeat just yet. There had to be a way to survive this and still stop the massive grimm, but how?

The short ex-huntsman stared out at the increasing number of grimm. He couldn't fight them normally, not with the massive chest wound Ruby had inflicted on him in their duel. The self-destruct sequence would take all the grimm out, including the sleeping one generating all of the ebony-colored monsters, but that would kill him too. Realization dawned on him, there was a way he could make it, but it was a hell of a gamble, and there was no guarantee he would come out of it the same.

But it was a chance.

Richter typed in a new command on the laptop and his right hand shakily raised to cover his left eye. What he was about to do was incredibly stupid and dangerous, so much so that not even Darion was willing to try it. The room was designed to weaken and trap grimm so that Darion could mass consume them and subsequently, achieve "Godhood." It however, was not designed to consume the massive grimm sleeping in the mountain. Darion didn't even want to risk it.

And here he was about to try.

If he could consume all the grimm, including the giant one sleeping in the mountain before it woke up completely, he could make it through this. However, doing so could change him forever, and that's if he was even successful. What kind of being would he be? What kind of monster would he turn in to? Richter realized it didn't matter, just as long as he could see Ruby's face again.

Now resolved, Richter ripped his face off, transforming into his altered form. The blinding pain in his left shoulder made itself known again, but he paid it no heed. He needed to focus all of his energy into one thought.

Consume.

The laptop executed the command he had put into it and the entire room flared to life as bolts of electricity shot to and fro, zapping every single grimm in the room. As they began dissolving Richter opened his mouth wide, the smoke from the destroyed grimm all changed direction, heading straight for his mouth. He held back the urge to vomit as he began swallowing all of the smoke. The room continued to fire off electricity and the black blood from the ceiling began to dissolve before it could even form grimm, Richter consumed that as well.

The room began to shake even more violently, but the short ex-huntsman stood firm. The massive grimm was beginning to awaken, he had to consume it before that could happen. Redoubling his efforts, Richter began drawing smoke from the ceiling above him. Was that from the massive grimm? Was this actually working?

An inhumane shriek made itself known in the room and Richter stumbled to his knees, losing his concentration. He vomited, dark fluid flying from his mouth to land in a pool at his feet. Wiping his mouth with his bandaged hand, Richter stood back up to his feet. No, he wouldn't lose this battle, he had to succeed here or Ruby and an entire kingdom could be lost.

With the last of his strength, Richter leapt up to the ceiling and stabbed Dyrnwyn into it. Gritting his teeth, the short ex-huntsman began spreading his aura across the entire ceiling. The grimm he had consumed gave him a boost and he used it to the fullest of his ability. One giant land mine, if he detonated one giant land mine he might be able to kill the sleeping grimm, at the very least he could wound it and maybe make it weak enough for him to consume. It was the only plan he had.

Another inhumane shriek, but Richter let out a roar of defiance in his distorted voice. The entire ceiling was now glowing black-white with his power, all he had to do was give the mental command to detonate. It was the moment of truth.

Richter's last thoughts were of Ruby's cheerful face as he shoved Dyrnwyn into the ceiling another inch and detonated the giant land mine in the ceiling he had formed. His entire world flashed white and then became nothing at all.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Yang Xiao Long would never forget this day.

She had regained consciousness a few minutes before to discover that she had been knocked outside of the whole mountain. Despite her broken left arm and destroyed right gauntlet, the blonde huntress was about to charge right back in when a peculiar sight stopped her. A translucent sphere shot out of the side of the mountain and Yang spotted her little sister and the rest of her teammates inside of it. The sphere deployed a parachute and began to descend gently below the treeline, some distance away.

Yang let out a sigh of relief, her friends were out of danger, but what about Darion? Did they stop the Sirensong? As she was asking herself these questions, the unbelievable happened.

Yang Xiao Long would never forget the day she saw a mountain cave in on itself.

The blonde huntress was forced to cover her face with her right arm as dust and small rocks washed over her. Yang's aura had yet to recharge and so she took the full brunt of the pebble shower that hit her. She was going to have so many bruises in the morning.

When it finally ended, what was once a mountain was now a giant crater, a lazy trail of smoke flowing into the sky from the center of it. Yang stood there and looked on in amazement, there was no way nothing could have survived that, not even Darion in his roided up form.

With that settled in her mind, Yang began limping her way towards where she saw the escape pod land. It took some time, especially in her battered state, but thankfully there was no grimm to attack her. The progress was slower than she would have liked, but eventually the escape pod was in sight, and what Yang saw almost broke her heart.

Weiss and Blake were still unconscious, both looking like hell. Blake's right eye socket was a bloody mess and Ruby….

Yang frowned as he saw his little sister, crying her silver eyes out. It was then she realized the group was one short.

Richter.

The blonde huntress looked back towards the destroyed mountain with a frown, that bastard, did he really sacrifice himself again? What a noble idiot.

It took some more time, but eventually Yang figured out how to open the escape pod. As soon as she touched her sister's shoulder, Ruby was embracing her. Her little sister's tiny arms were wrapped around her waist as she sobbed into her abdomen. Yang held her as best as she could with her right arm as she looked on in worry. She hadn't seen Ruby this bad since their mom had never returned from her mission. But she was strong, she would get through this.

She had to.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _One month later_

"By bringing the existence of the Sirensong to the public, you have caused the company great harm, Weiss." A stern voice said from the screen in Weiss' scroll. "Approval rating is at an all-time low and our stocks are dropping by the day."

Weiss did her best to fight back the headache that was building. She had literally been discharged from the hospital an hour ago and had barely shut the door to her dorm room when she got the call from her father. His slightly wrinkled face was radiating disappointment.

"Darion was going to use the Sirensong once more and my team couldn't handle the situation on their own." She replied, keeping her tone even and respectful. "I had to seek assistance."

"The integrity of the company must be upheld at all times." Her father quickly interjected. "I would have thought my own daughter would have learned that by now."

Hearing this, Weiss' expression immediately soured, "Does that come at the expense of your own integrity?"

"What?" Her father said, caught off-guard.

The heiress pressed the attack. "You knew what Darion Shiver had done in the past. You knew what the Sirensong was capable of, and yet, you turned a blind eye to it all." Her eyes narrowed as she began to lose her temper. "Thousands of people died because of the Sirensong, and for what? To see a return on your investment?"

Weiss' father's voice went dangerously low, "You have no idea how much that device cost the company, cost ME. I wasn't about to throw it in the trash bin."

Hearing those words were like a dagger to Weiss' heart. She had heard all the rumors about the questionable acts of the Schnee Dust Company under her father's rule, but she didn't want to believe it. Even if it came from sources like Blake, her own teammate and friend, she vehemently refused in her mind that her father was a corrupt businessman. However, here it was, staring her in the face.

"So you would rather protect your investment than the lives of innocent people." She said slowly, incredulous of it all.

Her father took a breath to compose himself, "Where there is life, there is death my naïve daughter. Some just reach the end of the road we call 'Life.' Faster than others."

She knew he intended to sound like he was giving sage wisdom. Weiss saw it more as a snake revealing its true nature, a snake that had raised her and cared for her. Now the snake was biting her hand and the venom it spewed made her want to retch.

"I can't believe it." She responded, tearing up. "To hear these words come out of my own father's mouth…"

Just like every other time, her father was unmoved by her emotional display. "We can talk more when you're back at home." He told her in a cool and clipped voice, all business now. Just like he always was. "I have a plane coming to pick you up in six hours, I expect you to be ready."

Weiss' face hardened. No, she was done being ordered around by a snake trying to act like a father. "I won't be there."

Her father's face turned bright red. She could practically hear his teeth grinding as he fought to keep from yelling. "I will brook no more argument on this Weiss. You've caused enough damage to the Schnee name already."

"Then perhaps I shouldn't be a part of it anymore."

Her words stunned her father into silence for a moment, which was a first. She wasn't sure how he would react and so she waited, mentally bracing for the verbal reprisal with her neutral expression.

"I want you to think carefully about what you're saying." He finally said, almost hissing the words, so like a snake.

Weiss scowled at the screen. "I have." She informed him. "You're so concerned with the value of your investments that you don't stop to think about the value of people's lives!" Her eyebrows furrowed in sadness. "Not even your own daughter's! Darion almost killed me and the only thing you can think about is your precious little Sirensong!"

Another moment of silence ensued, but this time her father wasn't wearing a stern expression. Instead, he was surprised, shocked, as if her words had reached the real him for the first time since she was a little girl. Before the White Fang dominated his attention.

Emotion overwhelmed the heiress and she felt her careful calculated control begin to break down. "You're no better than the grimm. I'm ashamed to have ever called you father." Tears were streaming down Weiss' cheeks now, but she refused to let her face break, she glared intensely at her father on the scroll's screen, "Don't contact me ever again." She commanded, spewing as much anger into her voice as she could. She then disconnected the call.

Weiss finally let the emotions have their way with her. Her tiny body rocked with sobs as the tears flowed. Her father was a snake of a businessman and it took her this long to finally see it. There was no way she could stomach being the heir to such a corrupt company now. She would have to clear the Schnee name another way.

"I'm sorry." A familiar voice said from behind her.

Weiss turned around to see Blake, now sporting a black eyepatch that covered her right eye. The doctors' and Blake's own aura were unable to restore it. The faunus had been released from the hospital a week before her. She looked none the worse for wear, leaning her back almost casually against a wall.

The pale huntress wiped her eyes with her sleeve. "Don't be. You weren't the one who caused all of this."

"I know." Blake said. "But it's never a good thing when family fights. For what it's worth, I'm glad you stood up to him. It's because of his apathy that we went through that mess in the first place."

Weiss nodded her thanks at her friend's support as she dried her eyes, composing herself once more. "What have I missed?"

"Thanks to the information Richter gave Ruby before our…final battle with Darion. We were able to oust Cinder Fall and her accomplices, Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai. Unfortunately, they were able to escape the hunters and the Atlesian military." The expression in Blake's good eye became feral. "Their current whereabouts are unknown, but we got them on the run."

"Hopefully we can keep them that way." Weiss replied. "The Vytal Festival is coming up soon, can't have them ruining that."

Blake allowed herself a small smile. "Indeed."

Upon thinking of her next subject of conversation, Weiss' eyebrows furrowed in concern. "Is Ruby still searching for Richter?"

The smile quickly disappeared from Blake's face. "She still believes he's alive."

Weiss remembered the picture her faunus friend had showed her on the way to her dorm. "The entire mountain collapsed in on itself! There's no way anyone could have survived!"

"I agree, but Ruby doesn't."

The pale huntress shook her head. "Sooner or later, she's going to have to accept the fact that he's gone."

Blake's good eye softened, "I just hope it's sooner rather than later."

Weiss sighed, "Me too."

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Yang fidgeted once more, her left arm, currently in a sling, was starting to itch, but there was no way to scratch it. At least not out in the woods like she was. The doctors' informed her that while they could heal her left arm, it might never move the same way again. Some of Darion's aura had apparently got into her arm when he broke it and messed things up in there. Her career as a huntress was in jeopardy and it scared her, but she had bigger things to worry about, like trying to convince her baby sister to stop a fruitless search.

Ruby Rose fired Crescent Rose in gun form yet another time, shattering a boulder a dozen meters from where she was standing. Her silver eyes examined the empty space before taking aim at another boulder and firing again. Yang had been watching her repeat this process for hours. Hanging out on top of a giant pile of rubble left behind by a collapsed mountain was not her idea of recuperating. She couldn't leave Ruby out here alone though, her little sister was suffering.

"Take a break Ruby." The blonde huntress gently ordered, "You've been searching since morning, it's almost eight now."

Ruby fired her weapon again. "I'm fine." She wasn't. Yang could see the bags under her sister's silver eyes and the way she slouched. The girl was exhausted.

"You're going to give out at this rate." Yang said, she needed to change tactics, nothing she said before had gotten through. "Listen, I don't want to believe it either, but we may have to consider that Richter is…."

"No." Ruby immediately replied, interrupting her. "I made that mistake before and left him to be tortured by Cinder." Her hands gripped Crescent Rose tighter, "She twisted Richter, almost turned him into a monster." A sad sigh escaped the petite girl's lips. "And I wasn't there for him."

"It's not your fault." Yang responded.

Ruby turned to look at her, a melancholic look on her face. "Then why do I still feel guilty?"

Yang walked up to her sister, placing her right hand on her left shoulder, "Hindsight is 20/20 Ruby. If you keep looking at what you should have done in the past, you'll drive your present self insane."

Ruby lowered her head, "I thought I was given a second chance. When I saw Richter alive again, I thought I would be able to set things right and we could be like we were at Signal. I was really happy." Her lips curled downwards into a frown. "And then the idiot has to go and sacrifice himself again."

"He did it to keep you safe." Yang informed her. "That's how much he cared about you."

Ruby shook her head, "I'm not going to let him off that easy Yang." She looked at Yang then and the blonde huntress saw the familiar fire and determination in her eyes that she was used to. "I will find him and if I have to, I'll drag him back to Vale, bound and gagged."

Yang still didn't believe Richter had survived, but seeing such passion from her sister was a welcome change. She grinned mischieviously at Ruby. "Whoa, you don't need to share your kinky romance ideas little sister." Yang suddenly found her vision filled up with Ruby's backpack as it smacked her in the face.

"Help me search if you have time to talk." Ruby said in an annoyed tone.

Yang noticed her tone was lighter. She smiled, she was making progress.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Mercury Black was not having a good day.

He had been stuck in this miserable bunker outside of Vale for three weeks. When he had escaped the hunters and Atlesian military robots sent to capture him. And they didn't send just any old hunters to capture him and his team. No, they sent friggin' Qrow Branwen and Glynda Goodwitch. He lost track of Cinder and Emerald in the chaos and hadn't heard from Neo since his escape from the city. He had been all alone in this bunker, wondering if he was the only one who had escaped the authorities when Emerald finally showed up. She was currently grabbing a snack from the kitchen, stating she hadn't had a decent meal in days.

Mercury was currently in a meeting room of sorts, with a long table, several chairs on each side and a whiteboard at the opposite end of the exit door. The silver-haired terrorist had several marks on the whiteboard, dictating patrol spots around Vale, there were A LOT of marks. Someone had stirred up the hornet's nest and he really wanted to find out who, so he could kick the living stuff out of them.

The sound of the door opening caught Mercury's attention and he looked to see Emerald biting into a sandwich she had made as she closed the door. She looked like she had seen better days, her clothes were torn and dirty and there were bags under her eyes. She took a seat opposite of Mercury.

"Have you heard anything from Cinder?" He asked her.

Emerald shook her head, biting into her sandwich, chewing and swallowing, "No, they came after us so suddenly, it was all I could do not to get caught."

Mercury shook his head, slamming his fists onto the table in frustration. "How the hell did this happen? How the hell did our cover get blown?"

Emerald's eyes narrowed in thought. "It had to have been that weasel, Torchwick. He sold us out to get his freedom."

"Or maybe Neo?" Mercury suggested, "I could never quite tell what she was thinking."

"Whoever it is, I'm going to skin them alive." Emerald threatened, he couldn't agree more.

The sound of fighting and grimm dying filled their ears. The two terrorists jumped to their feet and Mercury frowned. The bunker was located deep in a nest of grimm, it would take a large military force or an exceptionally skilled hunter to have made it this far. Which meant it was either General Ironwood, Glynda Goodwitch, or Qrow Branwen. None of the possibilities were good.

"Damn it!" Emerald cursed, "Have they found us?"

The thief and the assassin raced for the bunker's exit. Peering outside all they could see was the bodies of multiple dead grimm, smoking in the moonlight. Cautiously, Mercury opened the bunker's exit door and stepped out, right into the center of a massacre.

It was worse once he got outside, dead creeps, beowulves, ursai, and even gryphons were strewn about as far as they could see. The two terrorists turned their gaze towards the center of the clearing, the place they couldn't quite see while behind the bunker's door and were greeted by an unusual sight.

A short figure stood before them, dressed in black with the exception of the ragged greycloak draped over their shoulders and the bandages wrapped around their hands and forearms. The first thing Mercury noticed that was off about the figure was the eyes, they were like miniature suns. The second thing was the mask draped over the front of his face, it looked very similar to a grimm mask. The last thing was the figure had the throat of a grounded nevermore gripped tightly in their right hand. The large winged grimm squawked weakly as it flapped its wings vainly in an attempt to escape, but the figure held firm. It was an unsettling sight to see such a formidable monster held in check like that.

"Cinder Fall…" The figure spoke, the voice male, but distorted and to Mercury, it almost sounded like a dozen voices speaking rather than one. "…Where is she?"

"She's not here." Mercury stated, getting the chills. He didn't like the vibes he was getting from this guy.

"What business do you have with her?" Emerald quickly added.

The figure's eyes flashed and Mercury immediately took a step backwards. He could feel the killing intent rolling off the short man in waves, it was almost suffocating him.

"She shattered my world…" The figure spoke again with quiet intensity, his eyes flashed again, and the nevermore in his hands squawked in newfound agony as grey flames engulfed it. "….So I'm going to burn hers."

With that, the figure dropped the nevermore and turned away, walking back to the treeline. Mercury noticed that the trees closest to the short figure warped and bended, turning from a healthy brown to a withered black or grey. The nevermore continued to squawk in agony, making sounds that Mercury didn't know the flying grimm could make. He exchanged a glance with Emerald and saw in her eyes the same fear that he felt in his gut.

The nevermore continued to wail in torment as the grey flames continued to torture it without mercy. Mercury could only look on in disbelief.

What in the world had they gotten into?

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N:I was heavily inspired by Mortal Kombat X's after-credits ending for that final scene. The one where Raiden warns Liu Kang and Kitana about attacking Earth Realm then throws Shinnok's head at their feet.  
**

 **And so ends Shattered Worlds. I originally was going to stop this one after chapter two, when Ruby was visiting Richter's grave, but my brain had to keep giving me ideas. So I decided to experiment with poor Richter Bremen and see how I could fit him into the RWBY universe. I'm not sure if the experiment was a success or not, but I had a lot of fun writing this. Now it's time to recharge the creative battery.**

 **As to what I'll work on next, I'm not sure, there are some unfinished fics I would like to get back to, but it's been so long that I lost my train of thought. I also have some ideas for a sequel to this fic, but I'm not sure if enough people would be interested, I also need to take a little break before diving back into it again.  
**

 **I hope you enjoyed this story and looking forward to Volume 4 whenever that comes out!**

 **UPDATE ON 4/18/16**

 **-Work has begun on another fic that takes place after Shattered Worlds. I don't really want to call it a sequel as it's a shorter story.**

 **-Forgot to mention another inspiration, Ruby and Richter's fight in chapter 16 was heavily inspired by Kakashi vs. Obito fight in Naruto: Shippuden. I really loved the sad music that played while two old friends beat the hell out of each other.**

 **-If Shattered Worlds had a theme song I think it would be the song "Through It All" from the band "Spoken" One of my favorite songs atm.**


	18. An Arc's Journey 1

**A/N: Hello again, got another idea to continue the storyline of Shattered Worlds. This isn't quite a sequel, it will be shorter than Shattered Worlds(Theoretically) and is meant to bridge the gap to the sequel when I get around to it. I will do my best to do weekly updates, but between work and other projects I might not meet that goal, will try my best though!**

 **Would like to thank everyone who has favorited, followed and reviewed this. Also thanks to herald of the scourge for reviewing chapter 17. It's a bit belated, apologies for that.**

 **PLEASE NOTE: This is an AU. It's a scenario that plays out in my head if you ask the question: "What if Cinder and her group didn't sabotage the Vytal Festival Tournament?" in Volume 3. This is an idea in my head on how it would branch out. Hope you enjoy it.**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _3 years before the 80_ _th_ _Vytal Festival_

 _"Dad, why won't you teach me how to be a huntsman?" Jaune Arc asked his father, James. The elder Arc, with a shock of blonde hair the same color of his son's, but with a neatly trimmed beard and mustache, didn't even turn around to face his son. Instead continuing to stand in front of a bookshelf and read the tome in his hands._

 _"You don't know what you're asking." James Arc told his son._

 _"Of course I do!" Jaune protested, "I want to be a hero just like you!"_

 _This time, James Arc did turn his head, glaring at his son with such intensity that Jaune took a step backwards. "It would destroy you." The elder Arc stated, closing the tome in his hands and making his way out of the Arc Family Archives._

 _Jaune watched him go with a forlorn look. That hadn't gone the way he expected. He thought if he pressed his father he would give in, like he saw his sisters do a few times before, growing up. However, his insistence obviously hadn't had the same outcome. The young Arc sighed, what did he do wrong?_

 _"Chin up Jaune." A familiar voice, the voice of his second oldest sister, Jasmine, spoke from his left. He hadn't even seen her walk up to him. "Dad's been stressed lately, maybe try to talk to him tomorrow." She offered._

 _Of all his sisters, Jasmine had helped him out the most. Though all her sisters treated him with varying degrees of care and respect, Jasmine seemed to really go out of her way for him. She had the family hair color and eyes, her long hair which normally went to the base of her spine, was pulled up to her shoulders with a bun located at the back of her head. Like her brother, she wore plate body armor, but unlike him, she wore a blue long-sleeved tunic underneath the armor, blue pants that were slightly puffy and knee-length leather boots covered her legs and feet. On Jasmine's back rested her weapon, a greatsword._

 _"I don't get it Jasmine, why is he so unwilling to teach me?" Jaune asked his older sister. "Killing grimm doesn't seem so hard."_

 _She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Jaune, being a hero is more than just killing grimm."_

 _Jaune grinned, "Yeah!" He agreed, "It's about looking cool while killing grimm!" he finished with a fist pump._

 _Jasmine shook her head, though a smile played on her lips. "Not quite. Being a hero is about being selfless, about overcoming odds even when you have doubts of your own strength. It's not an easy path to take."_

 _"I don't care." Jaune replied. "I want to be one, whatever it takes."_

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present day._

The bullhead streaked across the morning sky. The sun was out in full force as it shined its warm rays down upon the snow-covered pine trees below. As beautiful of a sight it was, it also made for uncomfortably cold temperatures and the occupants of the bullhead were counting their blessings they had heat in the ship.

One of the occupants was standing near the bay doors, his left hand gripping a handhold above his head tightly. He was a seventeen year old boy with medium-length blonde hair and blue eyes. He was garbed in what most would say casual wear. A black hoodie, jeans and sneakers. However, there was plate armor over the hoodie and he was armed with a sword with a sheathe that doubled as a shield. His name was Jaune Arc and he was currently lost in his own thoughts.

Several months had passed since the Vytal Festival Tournament. It had been an exciting time for Jaune and his team, especially since Pyrrha ended up winning the whole thing. Defeating Yang in the finals to claim the title of champion. Jaune smiled at the memory of their celebration afterwards, Ren made Nora turn at least fifty shades of green from a nutritious concoction he had made. Yang somehow got the socially awkward Ruby to sing karaoke, and last but not least, Blake and Weiss had an epic showdown in the remnant card game that went down to a nailbiting finish. Then there was Pyrrha, he could still taste her lips on his if he concentrated hard enough.

Unfortunately, that happy little time came to an end. Shortly after the tournament, Pyrrha Nikos vanished. Every day Jaune and his team searched endlessly for her, but their search had been fruitless. Jaune suspected that maybe Cinder Fall and her crew might have something to do with it. They did get busted as terrorists. The strategist in Jaune told him they were planning to sabotage the Vytal Festival Tournament in some way, but thanks to some information leaked by a friend of Ruby's, they were stopped. Jaune suspected they might have something to do with Pyrrha's disappearance, but that was just a gut feeling.

"Thanks for letting me come along Jaune." A voice said to Jaune's left.

Jaune turned in that direction to see Ruby Rose, his petite silver-eyed friend garbed in red and black. She was also gripping a handhold above her with her left hand. Her lips were curled upward slightly in a smile, but Jaune could tell there was a lingering sadness underneath it. Like Jaune, she had also lost someone important to her, a boy named Richter Bremen. Apparently he had been friends with her since they were kids and had been brutally tortured and experimented on by Cinder Fall. The experiments had turned him into some sort of grimm-hybrid thing according to Ruby. Although her team suspected he was dead, Ruby had not given up hope. So if she was still going to search for her friend after half a year, then he wasn't going to give up on Pyrrha either.

Jaune smiled back, "We needed a fourth member for this mission anyway and you get along well with Ren and Nora. It was a no-brainer really."

Ruby nodded her thanks and Jaune shifted his thoughts. Even before the Vytal Festival Tournament, attacks by grimm had been becoming more frequent and dangerous. To make things worse, those weird grimm-hybrids that Ruby described as "Altered." Began appearing. According to her, they seemed to have similarities to her missing friend. They were freakishly strong and most of the time these altered would go berserk, if left unchecked, their rampages could level outlying villages easily. It was getting to a point where the frequent missions were interrupting their lessons at Beacon and Jaune briefly wondered how far behind he was on homework. He cringed at the thought.

"Got any leads on your friend?" Jaune asked, making conversation.

Ruby shrugged her tiny shoulders. "Just a hunch. Richter has always been cautious. With the increasing number of altered, I'm guessing he would try to occupy the more remote areas like this one."

Jaune nodded, "Makes sense." His team's current mission was to safeguard a remote communications tower being built a long ways southwest of Vale. The tower was being built to open up communications for a village named Turthus, located at the base of a dormant volcano. It was the first move of Vale to begin aggressively expanding the web of the CCTS. Besides Turthus, there was no civilization around for hundreds of kilometers. If Ruby's friend liked remote places, Turthus sure fit the bill.

"What about you?" Ruby asked him.

Jaune looked at her blankly, he had been lost in thought. "Huh?"

"Any leads on Pyrrha?"

His smile vanished, "No." He answered, "It's like she disappeared off the face of Remnant." He must have had a real melancholic look on his face, because Ruby frowned in concern at him.

"I'm sorry." She told him.

"Not your fault, let's just….focus on the mission okay?" Jaune requested.

Ruby nodded, "Right."

Turthus came into sight and the bay doors of the bullhead whirred open, exposing Jaune to the cool winter air. He took a glance behind him to see Ren poking Nora awake, who suddenly snapped to attention and muttered something about pancakes. Ren then gave him a nod, indicating that he was ready. Jaune nodded back and returned his attention to the small village below. It looked more like a collection of cabins then an actual village, some of the people looked up as they flew by, a few of the children even waved. He saw Ruby wave back to them out of the corner of his eye.

The bullhead flew further south, where the communications tower was halfway built. While the bottom was mostly finished, the top part was nothing, but a skeleton of metal beams. Various piles of building materials were scattered all around the tower. Jaune braced himself, it was show time.

"We're here!" He shouted to his team, "Be ready to jump in thirty seconds!"

Eventually the bullhead slowed to a crawl directly above the communication tower and Jaune's team made their exit. The ship couldn't come down for a landing as the area was still considered hostile and losing even one bullhead at this point would be a problem for Vale, most of them were being overworked as it was.

Now in freefall, Jaune remembered the last time he was in a situation like this, when he was doing his trial in the Emerald Forest to determine teams. Back then he had Pyrrha to save him, but this time she wouldn't be here to insure he had a safe landing, he had to rely on himself.

The young Arc watched as his teammates used their natural talents and weapons to land smoothly and stylishly onto the ground. While he had improved greatly thanks to his training, he was still a ways off. Instead he went for more practical means. Pulling a small metal ring on the left shoulder strap of his backpack, a small white parachute deployed, slowing his descent. Jaune smiled in triumph, he might not get points for style, but there was nothing wrong with being slow and steady.

And then the parachute got caught on one of the metal beams at the top of the communications tower.

The groan Jaune emitted from his lips was probably loud enough to be heard in the entire forest. Couldn't one thing go smoothly in his plans?

"Uh guys? A little help here?" Jaune called out, his feet dangling uselessly in the air. A moment later, Ren leapt up and sliced the cords of the parachute. The young Arc fell into the arms of Nora, who had an amused look on her face. "Thank you." He muttered, deflated as she set him on his feet.

Jaune's embarrassing entrance was soon forgotten as he looked around the communications tower site. The place had been attacked a few times before by grimm. Vale had sent groups of military forces to help clear them out, but they were unable to. So now the hunters were being sent in, even if they were still in training. The kingdom must be really shorthanded for them to do this, but Jaune's team was exceptional, they could handle this.

"Set up a perimeter." Jaune ordered. "Ren take the north, I'll take the south. Nora, you're east, that leaves the west for you Ruby."

Everyone nodded in acknowledgement, even Ruby. Being the leader of her own team, Jaune was worried she might try to step on his toes, but before they stepped onto the bullhead to begin the mission she told him she wouldn't interfere with his leadership. It was reassuring to know.

The team split up to head to their assigned directions. Jaune sprinted to the south, his sword and shield in hand. Mentally, he went through the lessons Pyrrha had taught him, it never hurt to rehearse.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Nora Valkyrie raised her hammer above her head before bringing it down on top of a beowulf alpha's head. Using a recoil shot, she backflipped away before the other beowulves could hit her from behind. She landed, then charged into the group of grimm, with each swing she sent one of them flying until they were distant dots in the horizon.

The team hadn't been the same since Pyrrha's disappearance. Ren, who was already a hard worker, was working overtime to try and attempt to fill the hole their red-haired teammate had left behind. Jaune's determination to find her again was bordering on obsession. As for herself, Nora missed the pillar of support Pyrrha used to be for their team. If one of them faltered, Pyrrha was always there to hold them steady and she had turned Jaune from someone who couldn't beat up a common mugger to a surprisingly capable hunter. Her absence was sorely noticeable and Nora only hoped they wouldn't spiral downwards. Otherwise they would have to be called team JNR as in junior.

As in team loser….

Banishing the negative thoughts from her mind, Nora delivered a homerun swing to the left hip of a beowulf that was charging her, sending it into another group of its brethren and knocking them over like bowling pins. Nora grinned wickedly at the remaining beowulves, leaping into the air and raising her hammer over her head for another groundshattering strike. The lust for battle was taking over and she embraced it.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Lie Ren shredded through half a dozen creeps thanks to his weapons, StormFlower, dual automatic pistols with collapsible blades at the end. They might not be the most powerful weapons, but he wouldn't trade them for anything, what they lacked in power they made up for in speed.

In order to try and honor Pyrrha in her absence, Ren had doubled down on his training. He hoped to do what Pyrrha had previously done and fill in the gaps for the team. Although he had made some improvements, he still had a ways to go, but the young huntsman was resolved to see his goal through.

An ursa began barreling down towards him, StormFlower's gunfire unable to slow its charge. Ren ducked under the swing the ursa threw at him with its left forepaw and anchored the blade of his left pistol into the grimm's left hip. The young huntsman used that to swing around to the ursa's back, firing his spare pistol point-blank into the back of the ursa's head. It toppled forward, onto its belly and didn't rise again.

Ren was leaping away from the dead ursa when instincts warned him something was coming up fast from his rear. Without looking, the young huntsman swung his left pistol backwards in an overhead swing, feeling it dig into something fleshy. He heard the death yelp of a beowulf as a result of his attack. Tightening his grip on his left pistol, Ren springboarded from the now-dead grimm, positioning himself upside-down in mid-air above the rest of the beowulf pack. The young huntsman then spun like a top, unloading StormFlower onto the grimm below him. The hail of bullets shredded through the beowulves like they were paper. Some tried to run, but didn't get very far before they were littered with bullet holes.

Ren righted himself in the air and landed easily in a crouching position, surveying the aftermath of his attack with a slight frown. His timing was off by a second and a half, he needed to do better.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

A red blur streaked through a group of half a dozen ursai, the glint of metal could be seen as several slashes struck out, originating from the blur. The slashes knocked the grimm into the air and the blur coalesced into Ruby Rose's petite form. She stayed in her crouched position for almost a full second before using her semblance once again, blurring back the way she had come. This time the slashes from Crescent Rose chopped the ursai up into confetti and the pieces dropped down in her wake, dissolving quickly in the snow.

Ruby rested her scythe on her shoulders as the pieces of grimm continued to fall, staring up into the sky. A lot had changed in half a year. The 80th Vytal Festival Tournament had been a blast and although her sister had lost in the finals, she couldn't be too upset. After all, Pyrrha Nikos was a crazy good huntress. However after that, things started to get a bit more….hectic. Grimm activity spiked and even people that had been altered had shown up, looking a lot like Richter when she had last seen him, except they seemed more savage and feral.

Richter.

He had saved her life again, she acknowledged that, but the second time was different than the first time at that decrepit old mansion in Patch. This time Richter had told her that he loved her, shortly before the escape pod that carried her and her team was jettisoned away. It was already bad enough that he had willingly put himself in grave danger again, it was another to confess something like that. It made the ache she felt in her chest at his absence even more painful.

She had tried to track him down, both before and after the Vytal Festival Tournament, but the only thing she had to go on these past few months were witnesses that spotted a demon in a tattered grey cloak. The sources however, were less than reputable, and more than once she caught the stench of alcohol on their breath as she asked them for more information. Still the sightings had happened enough for her to believe that it wasn't a coincidence. Richter had to be alive, but the last time he cheated death, he had come back a changed man. How much of a change would he have gone through this time? Would he even recognize her?

Ruby collapsed Crescent Rose back into its carrying form, placing it in the holder at her lower back. Turthus had been the most recent sighting of the "Grey Cloak Demon." It was one of the reasons she had asked Jaune to accompany him on this mission, the other being they were friends and his team needed an extra member to properly ensure the communication tower's protection. She only hoped she could find Richter before he did something drastic. If she could just convince him to return to Vale, then that would be the first step towards things returning to normal and Ruby could really use some normalcy right about now.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Jaune hacked the head off of another creep as he continued to edge his way into a group of grimm. The young Arc kept his shield in front of him, blocking the stray attacks the grimm would send his way. Recalling the training he had been put through these past few months.

While Pyrrha had taught him well, when she disappeared he had lost his unofficial fighting tutor. Ren and Nora both offered to help, but their styles were too different from his own. It all seemed like a lost cause until the most unlikely of candidates stepped up to offer assistance in his training.

Professor Ozpin.

Beacon's Headmaster had offered to take Jaune up as an apprentice. He was thoroughly confused at the offer, surely Ruby or Pyrrha would have been better candidates and he told Ozpin this. However, the professor was adamant that he wanted to train the young Arc. The only reason he gave was that it was a "Favor." For someone.

And so, shortly after the Vytal Festival Tournament, Professor Ozpin began training Jaune. At first, the young Arc was worried, Ozpin carried no noticeable weapon, even Glynda Goodwitch could be seen using her wand to fix things when the students got too excessive in their horseplay. The only thing the headmaster ever carried was his coffee mug and his cane. Then again, Doctor Oobleck had a thermos that transformed into a weapon, maybe Professor Ozpin's weapon was a coffee mug? It was crazy enough to be true.

Regardless, his doubts were soon put to rest. The headmaster at Beacon showed Jaune why he led a school for training the elite in grimm slayers. Jaune felt his skills steadily improve under Ozpin's tutelage. Maybe in another year or two he could look at his team and Ruby and the others as a true equal.

Jaune was drawn away from his thoughts as a beowulf struck out at him. He blocked it with his shield and immediately countered with an upwards swing that bisected the grimm from groin to skull. Three more beowulves charged at him, striking out with their claws simultaneously. Jaune held his shield out, blocking all three strikes, he gave a little ground from the force of the impact, but his shield was reliable as ever, it held sturdy. Exerting himself, Jaune shoved his shield-arm out forcefully, the sudden push knocked the beowulves off-balance, leaving them wide open. Jaune quickly capitalized, executing a wide horizontal slash with his sword that decapitated all three grimm.

Before the bodies can even hit the floor, the young Arc was charging forward, slamming his shield into the chest of an ursa. He managed to knock the grimm over and not wasting any time, he plunged the tip of his blade into the ursa's heart. It seized up for a moment before going still.

Jaune removed his sword and stood up, flicking the excess blood off of his blade. Five creeps, four beowulves and one ursa, not bad for someone who didn't know what aura even was almost a year ago. He couldn't wait to see Pyrrha's face when she saw how much he had improved.

He just had to find her first.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

The last grimm dissolved into black smoke as Ren lowered his pistols. Not his best performance, but not his worse either. Perhaps a homemade drink would help when he got back home.

Something glowing in the treeline ahead of him caught the young huntsman's eye. His violet eyes locked onto glowing scarlet orbs, orbs that strangely looked human.

The thing, roughly resembling a man, suddenly lunged forward and reflexes saved Ren as he flipped over him, unloading StormFlower into his back. Or he would have except the glowy-eyed figure brought up his right forearm and blocked the shots. Normally a forearm wouldn't be able to do that, but this guy's forearm was almost as wide as he was tall. There were also bone-white cylinder-shaped objects extending from the back of the figure's elbows. A white mask covered the top half of his face and with the exception of his massive hands and forearms, he was covered in all black. It looked like a cross between man and grimm and that meant only one thing….

Ren was unable to finish his thought as the grimm-looking man pointed his left fist at him, the cylinder in his left elbow slid into his arm and Ren suddenly found himself spinning in the air. Pain and shock went through him as an invisible force nailed him on his right side, sending him into a twirling descent to the ground below. What the hell had hit him?

The young huntsman landed hard on the back of his head and shoulders, he flopped over onto his belly. The grass blurred into splotches of green as Ren dizzily reached up to the earpiece located in his right ear.

"I have an altered at my position! Need backup!"

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: Oh forgot to mention a fun tidbit of information. If Ruby and her Signal friends, Pearce Spicule, Trista Cornucopia and Richter Bremen had formed a team, they would have been Team Raptor (RPTR)**

 **When Richter was with Darion Shiver and his crew, Gena Celvic, and Novus Procter I would unofficially call them Team Dragon(DRGN) in my head.**

 **Wonder what other team names I can come up with. See you all next week!**


	19. An Arc's Journey 2

**A/N: Here's the next chapter, hopefully a week isn't too long of a wait for you all. Enjoy!**

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Three years before the 80_ _th_ _Vytal Festival Tournament_

 _Jaune leaned against the banister on the second-story of their house. While not quite as extravagant as a Schnee mansion, it was still quite roomy. Which was good if you wanted to get away from a heated argument between family members. The thing was though, Jaune wasn't trying to get away from the intense discussion being waged between his father and Jasmine in the room behind him. He was actually trying to eavesdrop. For they were talking about him._

 _"You can't keep ignoring Jaune forever!" Jasmine said, just one notch below screaming. "He wants to become a huntsman. You need to train him!"_

 _"You've seen him swing a sword Jasmine." His father replied, his tone calm, but with a hint of impatience. "The boy is clumsy, he'll never get the hang of it."_

 _"You've been trying to train him to use a greatsword, but what about something different?" A pause. "What about Crocea Mors?"_

 _"He has no right to wield that weapon." His father snapped, his patience drained._

 _"Doesn't he?" Jasmine challenged. "He's family after all and if I recall my history correctly, our great-great-grandfather had the same problems too."_

 _Another pause. "This is different."_

 _"Why?"_

 _"I've heard enough of this, leave me, I have business to attend to."_

 _The sound of angry footsteps heading to the door spurred Jaune into action, he slipped the headphones he had been carrying back on his ears and moved as far from the door to his father's study as he could. The young Arc leaned against the banister, pretending to be listening to music when Jasmine burst through the door, slamming it shut with enough force to shake the windows. She immediately walked up to him and grabbed him by the shoulders, prompting him to take his headphones off._

" _Jaune." She said his name, her face completely serious. "You want to be a hero. That's your dream right?"_

" _Yes." He said without hesitation. He wanted to be someone people looked to for protection. He wanted to be the slayer of monsters. He wanted to be someone his father would actually look at with respect and not pity. He didn't want to be pitied, anything but that._

 _Jasmine studied his eyes for a moment. "Never give up on it. No matter what."_

 _Jaune was confused by his sister's words, but he nodded in affirmative. Jasmine released her grip on his shoulders and took off down the flight of stairs that led to the first floor. Leaving him alone to soak in her advice._

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present Day_

 _"There's an altered at my position! Need backup!"_ Ren's voice came over Jaune's earpiece.

"Everyone gather at Ren's position!" Jaune responded into his earpiece, he got acknowledgements from both Nora and Ruby and began sprinting towards Ren's position. Thankful that he had decent cardio at least.

The young Arc frowned, so an altered had shown up. He knew it might happen, and they've dealt with them before, but he really wasn't feeling it today, he was hoping this mission would be routine. So much for that.

Handling an altered was risky, and the rules were no less than a team of four were to engage one. They were stronger and more durable than the usual grimm they fought. The fact that they also were apparently once human also unsettled Jaune. It was disturbing to think someone had twisted another sentient being into those….monsters.

Pushing those thoughts to the fringes of his brain for now, Jaune rushed through the woods, running through the effective strategies against altereds in his head.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Ren rolled out of the way of the altered's right fist, it crashed into the ground, puncturing a hole in the snow and dirt. The young huntsman pulled up his dual pistols and fired a dozen shots at the altered's head, who blocked it with his left forearm. The grimm-hybrid growled and punched a shockwave at Ren. He managed to sidestep to his left and the invisible blast whizzed by so close it teased the hairs on his skin as it sailed by, punching through several pine trees and knocking them over. Ren felt a bead of sweat trickle down the right side of his head. That had been too close.

The altered was far from done. This time punching three shockwaves at the young huntsman in quick succession. Ren took two running steps forward and leapt over the first shockwave, sidestepped the second, then jumped and twirled over the third. Gracefully, he spun clockwise like a top until he came within melee range of his enemy, lashing out with his left hand and slashing the altered on his right cheek, causing the grimm-hybrid to flinch. Ren immediately followed through by channeling his aura into his right hand and slamming his palm into the altered's gut.

Like a baseball that was just hit out of the ballpark. The grimm-hybrid was sent sailing out of the clearing that had served as their battlefield, crashing into numerous pine trees. Eventually, the altered hit the ground spine-first, growling in frustration and rising to his knees. Ren had followed his opponent through the air as best as he could. Seeing the altered slightly sluggish and in a vulnerable position, the young huntsman sought to capitalize, taking aim with StormFlower.

Before Ren could get a proper bead on him, the altered pointed his fists behind him. The cylinder-shaped pistons extending from the grimm-hybrid's elbows sank into his flesh a good six inches and he was suddenly rocketing forward, courtesy of the recoil from firing a shockwave behind him. Ren noted that it was very similar to how Yang Xiao Long gave herself a boost with her leaps before the altered crashed into his chest.

The impact sent Ren sailing into the trunk of a tree. The young huntsman's body went numb and stars danced in his vision as he collapsed into a heap. He could only watch as the altered charged forward. The grimm-hybrid reared his right fist back in preparation to finish him off.

And was promptly floored when Nora appeared from above the altered, slamming her hammer, Magnhild, into his back. The impact of the blow created a small crater and the grimm-hybrid grunted in pain, dark-colored blood flying from his wide open mouth.

Ren felt arms around his waist and a split-second later he was moving at breakneck speeds. Sparing a glance behind him, the young huntsman caught a glimpse of a red cloak and grinned. Ruby was carrying him to safety.

As the petite red-clad girl set him down a safe distance away. Ren returned his attention to the altered, who had recovered from Nora's big attack with alarming haste. Nora slipped into a defensive stance as the altered roared into her face, bringing its right fist forward in a fierce punch. Ren visibly winced, Nora was going to feel that in the morning.

There was a loud clang, and another roar from the altered, but this roar wasn't a declaration of violence, no, this roar was one of pain. For the grimm-hybrid didn't strike flesh and bone, but a shield. A shield belonging to Ren's leader, Jaune Arc. Who was now standing tall between the altered and Nora.

The whole team was now assembled.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Jaune eyed the altered as he kept the grimm-hybrid's fist at bay with his shield. They had defeated altered twice before, which was why Vale had sent them to defend the remote communications tower. Still, even with that record, he wasn't going to take any chances.

"Nora. Pincer attack." He ordered. Nora immediately sprung into action, leaping over Jaune with her hammer raised above her head.

"Got it!" She acknowledged, twisting in the air and positioning herself so she was behind and above the altered. She dropped Magnhild onto the altered's head, or would have if the grimm-hybrid hadn't of intercepted the strike with his right forearm. Nora fired her weapon and used the recoil to leap away just a second before she would have been struck in the face from a shockwave from the altered's left fist.

Jaune chose that moment to strike, noticing that while the altered's arm was protected by what looked like bone, it stopped at his elbow. Jaune made his cut just above the altered's left elbow and felt the steel of his blade sink into flesh. The grimm-hybrid grunted in pain and twisted around to face Jaune, making a horizontal slashing motion with his right hand. Dome-shaped explosions of aura peppered the ground between Jaune and the altered and the young Arc was forced to perform a diving roll backwards to avoid being blown to bits.

Unfortunately, his right shoe was not so lucky as the heel caught the edge of one of the explosions and burst into flame.

"Hot! Hot!" Jaune shouted, rolling around frantically and patting his shoe to desperately put it out. Eventually he succeeded, but not before looking like a spastic spidermonkey. Hopefully no one on his team witnessed that.

The altered began advancing towards Jaune and if looks could kill the young Arc would be buried six feet deep. The grimm-hybrid's progress was halted when a red blur sped by in front of him and a deep cut opened up on his abdomen a second later. The altered roared in pain and doubled over, covering the wound with his right hand. He struck out with his left hand, punching a shockwave at Ruby. The red cloaked huntress used her semblance to dodge the shockwave and swing back around so that she was behind the altered. A trail of blood spewed forth from the back of the grimm-hybrid's neck as Ruby's scythe sliced into him again.

Growling in frustration, the altered blasted the ground with both of his fists, sending himself high into the air. Jaune's eyes narrowed as he watched the grimm-hybrid, this was a change in his tactics, what was he up to?

The young Arc got his answer when the altered pointed his left fist at Ruby, and fired it at the red-cloaked huntress. Jaune watched in disbelief as the grimm-hybrid's fist detached from his wrist and shot at Ruby like a bullet. She managed to narrowly avoid getting hit by leaping to her left, but Jaune noticed with great alarm that the fist was beginning to glow.

"Ruby look out!" Jaune shouted a warning, Ruby looked back at him and then her silver eyes caught sight of the glowing fist. She prepared to use her semblance to get away, and that's when the fist detonated.

Ruby was sent tumbling head over heels, landing hard on her face. Jaune looked up and saw the altered taking aim with his right fist and muttered a curse that would have shocked his mother. He dashed towards his fallen friend, but it was useless, he wouldn't make it before the altered fired his spare fist.

A loud report from above signaled to Jaune that the grimm-hybrid had fired his other fist. The young Arc was about to try and throw his shield to take the hit when he saw Nora ahead of him. The hammer-wielding huntress transformed her weapon into a grenade launcher and shot a round at the fist, causing it to prematurely detonate before it could reach Ruby. She then took aim at the altered and fired a few rounds. Pink explosions of Dust began to fill the air as Nora tried to get a bead on the grimm-hybrid, he was pulling off some impressive aerial maneuvers to keep from being blown to pieces. Unfortunately, he was still able to use his invisible shockwave attacks and began to return fire at Nora.

As his teammate and their enemy exchanged fire. Jaune racked his brain for a strategy. Their options were limited as long as the altered remained in the air, and from the looks of how he was fighting, he didn't plan to return to the ground anytime soon. That meant he had to get grounded the hard way. Out of the corner of his eye, Jaune spotted Ren back on his feet, the green-clad huntsman was still shaking the cobwebs out, but he looked about ready to return to the fight. Good.

"Ren!" Jaune called out, getting his teammate's attention. The young Arc held his shield above his head. "Up!"

Ren nodded, not needing any other words to be said. Jaune braced himself as his green-clad teammate springboarded off of his shield, leaping up to an altitude that matched the grimm-hybrid. Ren dug the blades of StormFlower into the shoulder blades of the altered, forcing him back to the ground bellyfirst at a very rapid pace. The impact created a small crater and Ren had wisely rode on the grimm-hybrid's back on the way down so that he took the brunt of the crash. The green-clad huntsman leapt away shortly after they landed, firing his dual pistols at the altered's exposed back as he leapt away.

Jaune felt pride in his team swell as they instantly knew what to do next, surrounding the altered. Ruby quickly caught on, positioning herself behind the grimm-hybrid, Nora was at the altered's right flank, Ren his left while Jaune had the front.

"Stay focused." Jaune told his team, "Nora, come in slowly on his right and then I can…."

He was interrupted when his teeth were rattled from an impact in the distance. Jaune looked to the north to see a thick column of smoke. One that was near Turthus. The sound of distorted laughter brought his attention back to the altered, who was smirking at him.

"Did you think I came alone?" The altered asked. The color drained from Jaune's face as he realized there wasn't one altered on the loose, but two. Dealing with one would be difficult enough, but how was he going to deal with a second?

"What do we do?" Nora asked, looking to him for orders. Jaune pondered for a moment, backup would take some time to get to them, too much time. You needed a 4-man team to handle one altered, that was the rule.

Jaune's eyebrows furrowed as he thought deeper, that was the rule for normal teams. His team was far from normal. His mind was made.

"Call for backup." He ordered. "I'll go and keep it busy until you guys finish up here."

Ruby looked at him like he had grown two heads. "You're going to fight an altered alone?"

Jaune shook his head, "I'm not fighting him, I'm going to keep him occupied until you guys finish up here."

"Are you sure that's wise?" Ren asked, voice tinged with concern.

The young Arc frowned in response. "No, but we don't have many options. I have the best defensive capabilities out of all of us, so I should be able to last until help arrives." He made eye contact with his red-cloaked friend. "Ruby. Take care of my team." She nodded in response, giving him a reassuring smile. Jaune Arc turned and immediately began sprinting towards Turthus, towards the column of smoke where the other altered was sure to be.

Jaune raced through the woods like a madman. Turthus was a remote village with next to no police or military force to defend them. If the altered got there before he did, it would be a massacre.

He arrived on a wide dirt road, the one that led to Turthus. Unfortunately, the young Arc was not on the road alone. Two dozen meters further down the road was the second altered, this one was leaner and slightly taller than his brethren. He was holding a man in his forties by the throat with his right hand and with his left an ivory colored spike extended from the forearm all the way past the back of his fist. Before Jaune could even begin running towards the altered, he sunk the spike into the man's forehead. The man twitched once, blood flowing down his forehead like a tiny river, before going limp. The altered tossed the man off the road like he was garbage. A small boy was behind the man, his eyes wide with fear as the altered reared his right fist back, preparing to impale him like he did the man, who was probably his father.

Jaune felt his anger spike.

Adrenaline fueling him, the young Arc managed to sprint over and swat down the spike in the altered's right forearm before it could reach the kid. Amazingly, the altered wasn't even stopped for a moment by his sudden arrival. The grimm-hybrid swiftly tried to shove the spike in his left hand into Jaune's spine and he had to diveroll forward to avoid getting impaled. The young Arc stood up from his roll, turned around and barely was able to block the altered's follow-through with his shield. The altered's right spike glanced off of the shield, showering sparks over them. Jaune tried an overhead strike with his sword, but at the same time, the grimm-hybrid lunged forward with his left spike. The two weapons collided in a fierce clash.

Jaune's sword almost tumbled from his fingers, but he managed to hold on as the force of the clash staggered him back. Then his right cheek was hit by what felt like a sledgehammer. The altered had recovered fast, and nailed him with a spinning backhand. Jaune fell onto his left side, but hastily rolled to his left and back onto his feet, just out of melee range of the altered. The young Arc caught sight of the kid running towards the village, good, he didn't have to worry about him getting hurt.

The grimm-hybrid actually smirked at him. "Oh a huntsman, this should be interesting. Prey that fights back." He said in a distorted voice.

Jaune's eyes narrowed. "I'm not your prey, monster. Neither are those people in that village."

The altered's eyebrows lifted in mock-surprise. "Monster? That's a label reserved for creatures with no soul or identity. I have both of those." The grimm-hybrid clenched his fists and dropped into a fighting stance, spikes prominently extended past the back of his hands. He smiled menacingly. "My name is Zenner Onyx and I'm going to kill you."

Zenner lunged towards Jaune again, striking the young Arc's shield and sending him sliding backwards a few meters. Jaune retaliated by performing a few overhead slashes with his sword, but Zenner blocks them all with his spikes, crossing them over each other to reinforce his guard. On the fourth strike, Zenner uncrossed his spikes, causing Jaune to stumble backwards awkwardly. The altered stabbed forward with both spikes, aiming for his chest, but the young Arc somehow lost his footing and fell onto his back. The spikes stabbed nothing, but empty air. Jaune winced, luck and clumsiness had allowed him to dodge that, but whatever, he'd take it at this point.

Rolling to his left, Jaune avoided being stabbed in the head by Zenner's left spike. As he got to his feet, the tip of Zenner's right boot was slammed into his chin. Jaune felt his feet leave solid ground as he was launched into the air. Zenner leapt up after Jaune, his right spike aiming for his chest. The young Arc grit his teeth, in the air his options were very limited, dodging was difficult and he could only attack something that was in range of his sword. Luckily, Zenner didn't seem to have any ranged abilities, but he did have the greater mobility, chances are the grimm-hybrid would turn him into a pincushion in the next few moments if he didn't do something.

Thinking back to his training with Ozpin, Jaune did have something he could maybe use. Most likely he'd botch it, but on the off-chance he didn't. It might just get him out of the current pickle he was in. Worth a try at least.

Rearing his left hand back, Jaune brought it forward and tossed his shield at Zenner, slamming the bottom edge of the shield right between the altered's eyes. Zenner grunted in pain and was knocked away from the young Arc. A chain attached to a metal bracer on his left forearm reeled the shield back swiftly, reattaching itself to his arm like it had never left in the first place. Feeling himself touch solid ground again, Jaune took off towards Zenner, who was just now landing. He lashed out with his sword, hoping to decapitate the altered, but Zenner deflected it with his right spike and Jaune ran harmlessly past him. The young Arc hastily turned back towards his enemy, his back now towards the village.

Zenner glared at Jaune, no longer looking so smug. "You lucky bastard, you should have been dead already, but your bad footing saved your life."

Jaune dropped into a fighting stance. "Yeah well, I'd like to think that luck is an important part of a battle." The young Arc suddenly found himself sliding back a meter or two as Zenner let out a powerful pulse of his aura.

"Well I hate to break it to you, but your luck has just run out." The grimm-hybrid announced, dropping into a fighting stance, his dark aura flaring around him. "I'm done messing around with a clown like you. I'm just going to annihilate everything in one attack, you and this lousy village."

Jaune let out a curse and was about to leap away.

"Sure you want to do that?" Zenner asked. "You might save yourself by dodging this, that's true. But I doubt Turthus has the same option."

The young Arc hesitated then. He was right, Turthus was in Zenner's path and judging by the pulses of aura he was emanating, the grimm-hybrid was about to unleash something bad. However, even if he held his ground, what could he do? He would be killed as well. Jaune's thoughts were jumbled mess as he tried desperately to think of a solution. What would Pyrrha have done in this situation?

The young Arc's eyes snapped open at that thought. His lips curled upwards in a grim smirk as he planted his feet, holding his shield in front of him. What would Pyrrha have done? The answer was simple, she would have defended the village at all costs, because that's who she was. If he didn't make a stand now, he wouldn't be able to look her in the eye when he found her again.

Zenner's aura had manifested around him as a dark-violet glowing shroud. "Choosing to die trying to protect the village huh." The altered said. "Admirable, but foolish."

Jaune narrowed his eyes, which were just above the top of his shield. "You keep talking like you know how this is going to end, but I promise you…." He glared intensely at Zenner. "….You won't make it past me."

Zenner raised an eyebrow. "Bold words huntsman, time to see you back it up."

Bending his knees, Zenner's aura intensified. Jaune slid back a few more inches, but he stood firm. He looked closely at the altered. An attack like this was going to be strong, his shield alone would not be enough to stop it. So that meant he had to rely on his aura, and his semblance. He prayed it would be enough.

Zenner suddenly shot forward, looking more like a torpedo than a humanoid. Jaune braced himself as the altered crashed into his shield. The force of the impact swayed all the nearby pine trees away from them. To both of the combatant's amazement, Jaune was holding his ground. The surprise on Zenner's face soon turned to rage and he redoubled his efforts.

Jaune stubbornly held firm, refusing to lose.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: Jaune vs. Zenner Onyx was inspired by the second fight between Archer and Lancer from Fate/Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works(The 2014/2015 version.) Really liked the intensity of that battle.  
**


	20. An Arc's Journey 3

**A/N: I kind of let loose with the violence in this chapter, be warned**

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

 _Three Years before the 80_ _th_ _Vytal Festival tournament._

 _"Soaring Ninja Wins!" The game on the screen said, Jaune watched with satisfaction as Jasmine sat there fuming._

 _"How!?" She exclaimed. "How does that even happen! I needed one more friggin' hit on you! One!"_

 _Jaune shrugged, looking smug, "What can I say sis? You can't leave yourself open to counterattacks."_

 _Jasmine jabbed her left index finger at him. "I call that a fluke!" She picked up her controller again. "One more game! I'm gonna wipe that stupid smirk off your face!"_

 _Jaune smiled, "Bring it on!"_

 _All talking died down as the two young Arcs focused on the fighting game. The only sound that could be heard were their fingers furiously hitting the buttons on their controllers. Jaune had to admit, Jasmine was doing much better this round, but he had put over a hundred hours into this game._

 _"Oh yeah!" Jasmine cheered, "Say hello to my twelve hit punish combo!"_

 _"Countered." Jaune replied simply. Jasmine looked on in disbelief as the victory she envisioned slipped out of her grasp._

 _"What!? Those aren't supposed to be counterable!" She shouted._

 _"Slight lapse on the invincibility frames on the ninth hit." Jaune explained matter-of-factly. "It's the only chance to counter and the timing is difficult, but get it right…."_

 _"Soaring Ninja Wins!" The game said once again._

 _Jaune's lips curled upwards into a smile, "And you can do that."_

 _Jasmine was rendered speechless for a few moments. Jaune thought she was going to go on another rant, but she actually looked impressed by him. It was a look he was not familiar with._

 _"You know, you might not have the best skills at the physical aspects of combat, but you definitely got some potential in the tactics part." His sister told him._

 _He felt his eyebrows raise. "Really?"_

 _Jasmine nodded, "Yeah, you just have to apply what you did to me to your practices."_

 _Jaune shook his head in response, "It feels different though, when I'm playing games like this."_

 _His sister gave him a confused look, "How so?"_

 _He sighed, his shoulders sagging slightly, "I don't know, maybe it's the fact that these are just pixels on a screen rather than real people getting violently beaten to a pulp. Seeing actual people in the real world doing stuff like this, it's intimidating."_

 _For a long moment, Jasmine stared at him. Jaune had the feeling she was mulling over what he had just told her. It was something he hadn't told anyone, not even his father._

 _"I see." She finally said. "We'll have to work on that."_

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present Day_

Ruby Rose circled around to the altered's left, leaving Ren to distract him with gunfire. She had taken over leading the assault on the grimm-hybrid from Jaune and so far the transition had been smooth. She worked well with Ren and Nora and they were chipping away at the altered. However, they couldn't afford to relax, one wrong move could lead to serious injury or even death, these altered didn't mess around. Still, it was strange, Richter was an altered as well, but he never acted this savage. Was he holding back this feral nature the entire time? That must have taken a huge amount of willpower.

She watched as Ren and the altered were facing each other sliding down a hill. Ren was firing his automatic pistols at the grimm-hybrid, who was blocking the shots with his arms. Nora charged in on the altered's right, according to plan. The hammer-wielding huntress executed an overhead swing aiming for the grimm-hybrid's right temple. The altered however reached up with its right hand and caught the top part of Magnhild's handle. He then proceeded to toss Nora into Ren's torso, knocking them both down. Ruby winced, that had not gone according to plan.

The red-cloaked huntress flew in from the altered's left. She lashed out with Crescent Rose in a horizontal swing, which the grimm-hybrid swiftly ducked under. Landing near the altered's right side, Ruby narrowly crouched under a backhand the grimm-hybrid delivered towards her face. She then leapt straight up into the air, as high as her legs and a recoil shot could carry her, avoiding the altered's left fist before he could punch the top of her skull in the process.

Using another recoil shot, Ruby dropped down from the skies like a vengeful red angel. The altered crossed his forearms above his head, blocking Ruby's slash which would have bisected him from head to groin. The clash cratered the ground beneath the grimm-hybrid, but other than that, Ruby's attack had no effect. She growled and used a recoil shot to backflip a safe distance away.

Nora covered her escape by shifting Magnhild to a grenade launcher, firing two of the explosive projectiles at the altered. The grimm-hybrid swatted them away with his hands and two explosions of pink Dust went off on either side of him. While he was distracted, Ren took the opportunity to deliver a nasty diagonal slash to the altered's back, opening him up from right shoulderblade to left hip. The grimm-hybrid grunted and then whirled around with surprising speed to face Ren. Nora quickly took advantage, firing a third grenade that slammed into the altered's back and detonated. Pink smoke plumed forth from the detonation, engulfing the grimm-hybrid.

Ruby motioned for the other two to wait. They no longer had a visual on their enemy, to go in blind would be very unwise. Best to wait for the smoke to clear.

It took a few moments, but the pink smoke finally dissipated, revealing the altered, bleeding heavily from his back. Despite the deep wound he had endured, the grimm-hybrid still looked ready to fight. Ruby frowned at that, this one was tougher than previous ones she had fought.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a teeth-rattling shockwave, coming from where Turthus was. Ruby looked in that direction to see what looked like two spheres of light colliding with each other, one white, one black and red.

"Whoa…" Ruby breathed.

Nora caught sight of the spheres as well. "Looks like Jaune's having fun."

Ren returned his attention to the altered, a look of determination on his face. "We need to hurry and finish things here. I suspect Jaune can't keep up a display like that forever."

Ruby nodded. "Right, let's finish this."

The group dropped into battle stances as the altered scowled at them.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

Jaune felt like his legs were on fire as he continued to hold firm against Zenner, who had his spikes pressed into his shield. Their auras flared against each other as they strained, Zenner seeking to run Jaune through and the Young Arc seeking to repel his attack from himself and the village. The pine trees around them swayed even further and one that was closer than the rest started to get uprooted.

The young Arc suddenly felt himself slide back a few inches, then a few more. He felt his determination falter with each inch he lost. The scowl on Jaune's face deepened, why couldn't he do this? Why did he always have to rely on others? Couldn't he take care of a problem himself for once in his life?

Jasmine wouldn't have let Zenner win.

Pyrrha wouldn't have let Zenner win.

Those thoughts caused Jaune's blue eyes to snap wide and he felt the frustration build within him. Turning it into his strength. The young Arc let out a roar of defiance and pushed back with his shield, Gaining back a few inches. Zenner's eyes widened slightly in surprise at this, and then their clashing auras finally destabilized and exploded.

At first, darkness was the only thing Jaune saw, but that quickly gave way to blurry vision and ringing ears. Now on his hands and knees, the young Arc looked up and through the disappearing smoke he caught sight of Zenner's motionless form. The altered was in a kneeling position, a hole larger than his fist in the center of his torso, his eyes were wide with shock.

"How…?" Zenner tried to ask, choking on his blood as some of it trickled down his chin.

"My semblance, I can reflect attacks back onto their user." Jaune explained. "All that power you tried to use to destroy myself and the village, I turned it back onto you."

"Bastard…" Zenner gurgled out. "That is…one hell of a semblance…" The altered spoke no more as he collapsed face-first into the ground, blood pooling underneath his still body.

A little queasiness crept into Jaune's stomach, but he kept his breakfast down. This wasn't the first time he had killed an altered, but it was never easy, to take a life. A grimm was a different story, they were monsters that preyed on people, but the altered, they could speak to you, they bled, they screamed in pain when injured. By all accounts they were a living breathing person, malformed by the experiments Cinder had done on them. Jaune didn't like it, but it had been his only choice in this situation. The altered's life or the lives of the people of Turthus.

It was an easy decision.

Jaune greedily took in lungfuls of air. While his semblance's ability was very useful, it could only be activated for a short amount of time, he could not use it consecutively. It took its toll on him.

Something in the corner of his vision caught Jaune's eye, something familiar. Turning to his right to get a better look, the young Arc spotted something red in the pine trees. A familiar red, not the kind that Ruby wore, but the red of hair.

Pyrrha's hair.

"Pyrrha?" Jaune whispered, still dazed from his struggle with Zenner. Shakily the young Arc rose to his feet. He stumbled after the shade of red he saw. It was Pyrrha's hair, he knew it, he would know those scarlet locks anywhere. He continued westward, past numerous pine trees, and just when he was about to chalk it up to him getting hit in the head to hard, he saw it again, the long flowing scarlet hair. It was a glimpse, just a glimpse, but it was enough for Jaune.

"Pyrrha!" Jaune called out with more confidence. Strength began to return to his legs and he trekked through the woods more steadily. He could hear the brush and branches being parted by someone up ahead. It had to be her.

A clearing approached and Jaune practically threw himself through the tree line. His blue eyes scanning the clearing rapidly, seeing everything, trees, snow, bushes.

And green eyes.

He locked onto those eyes, which belonged to a beautiful face with scarlet hair that ran down to the base of her spine. The armor, the sword, the shield. No doubt about it, this was Pyrrha Nikos. He had found her at last.

"Pyrrha." He breathed, bewilderingly, she didn't look happy at all, there was a sad frown on her lips, her eyebrows were furrowed in melancholy. For a second, Jaune thought he saw her green eyes glow orange, but it must have been the sunlight reflecting off the snow playing tricks on him. Without a word, she turned her back to him and continued into the treeline.

"Wait!" He shouted, dashing after her. No way he was going to lose her after all this time.

A sharp pain suddenly made itself known in Jaune's back. He felt something heavy knock him face-first into the snow, causing him to accidentally get a mouthful of the cold substance. As he lifted his head from the snow and spat some of it out, he found himself looking down the barrel of a rifle and at the other end of that rifle was a member of the White Fang.

"You need to be more aware of your surroundings huntsman." One of the White Fang members spoke. Jaune went to move, but another White Fang took aim with his rifle.

"If you so much as twitch a finger, I'll put a hole through your skull large enough to fit my fist through." The second White Fang threatened. Jaune glared at him, but he complied, besides the two holding him at gunpoint, he counted at least twenty to thirty White Fang surrounding him. All of them were prepared to shoot or cut him down if he tried anything drastic, he was at a serious disadvantage.

"What should we do with him sir?" A White Fang member asked. Jaune watched as their apparent leader stepped into sight, a White Fang that was taller than the rest, wearing a sleeveless tunic that allowed his muscled arms to breathe. Jaune was quick to notice the handle of a chainsaw on the faunus' back. He had heard some of the stronger members of the White Fang, the lieutenants, had more "Unconventional." Weapons to use, this must be one of them.

The White Fang Lieutenant sized him up. "Bring him with us, we could always use more bodies for the experiments."

Jaune immediately became alarmed at the mention of experiments. Before the young Arc could do anything however, he took a riflebutt to the face, causing everything to go dark.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV  
**

Jaune awoke to find himself being dragged by his arms through the snow, the familiar weight of Crocea Mors at his hip was gone. No doubt the White Fang probably confiscated that and his scroll as well. Without them, escape would be very difficult.

"If you ask me, Adam Taurus has lost it." The White Fang Soldier holding his left arm spoke to his comrade in hushed tones.

"What do you mean? The White Fang is stronger than ever." The White Fang soldier holding his right arm replied in the same tone. With nothing more constructive that could be done, Jaune decided to remain silent and listen to their conversation.

"I don't know about you, but these altered scare the hell out of me, more beast than man. Haven't you heard how they create them?" Lefty asked.

"No, how?" Righty inquired.

"Rumor is they take orphans, criminals, the people the kingdoms won't miss and they inject them with grimm blood! That's what makes them all unstable and crazy. I wouldn't want to go near that stuff, let alone have it in my body."

"That's pretty messed up."

"Here's another thing I heard. You know this alliance we had with Cinder Fall and our group? I hear it fell through and this is why Adam Taurus has taken the initiative. It's why he's been building hidden labs and trying to create altered en masse. Most don't survive the process, but the ones that do? Well, you've seen what they can do."

"I'm much more worried about the grey-cloaked demon."

"The grey-cloaked demon? Come on man, that's just Vale propaganda trying to scare us. He's a myth!"

"I don't know man, I had a friend who was stationed at lab 13. Their last report was sightings of a man wearing a grey cloak. They went dark after that."

"In case you haven't noticed, we're out in the middle of nowhere, communications are almost impossible out here. To us, everyone has gone dark.

"But it's not just us!" Righty hissed. "No one else has been able to get into contact with lab 13. I'm telling you the grey-cloak demon is real. He's attacking our labs, some say he's searching for the souls of those who made him that way, so he can consume them. Like some kind of vampire."

"You're tripping man."

"Whatever."

Jaune soaked in the information he had just heard. While sad he had heard no details about Pyrrha. He could at least bring these rumors about a grey-cloaked demon to Ruby when he got out of this mess. Based on her description of Richter Bremen, he was wearing a grey cloak when she had saw him last and him targeting labs made sense, after all he had been tortured in a lab, it made sense that would be how he retaliated.

Something more alarming though was the fact that the White Fang seemed to be trying to mass produce altered, under this Adam Taurus' direction. So far it sounded like he still had some progress to make, but if he figured out a way to effectively produce altered in these hidden labs of the White Fang, it would mean very bad things for Vale and the other kingdoms.

The young Arc began glancing around, hoping the soldiers holding him would have his weapons, but no such luck. They were wise enough to keep those out of his arms' reach.

Suddenly the men dragging him by the arms stopped. His curiosity getting the better of him, Jaune looked up to see what had caused the halt in progress. By doing so, he had effectively let his captors know he was conscious now, but that seemed to be the least of their worries.

Just a little over a hundred meters in front of them. The pine trees were bending and warping, their bark peeling off like the skin of an orange. At the center of it was a sphere of what could only be described as darkness, which was pretty out of place since it was the middle of the day.

"It's coming right for us!" A White Fang shouted.

"Battle positions!" The White Fang Lieutenant roared. Every member of the faunus terrorist group prepared for battle. The sphere of darkness inched closer to the group, now it was seventy meters away...

Sixty meters...

Forty meters...

Thirty...

It stopped there and to everyone's disbelief, even Jaune's, the sphere suddenly vanished, thin strands of black-colored aura trailed lazily into the air from it's sudden disappearance and then there was nothing. As if the sphere had never existed. For a long handful of moments there was an uncomfortable silence.

"Maybe we scared it off?" One of the White Fang soldiers said with a hopeful tone.

And that's when the snow erupted in front of Jaune.

From the snow leapt a lean, but muscled young man of slightly lower than average height. His hands were covered up to the forearm in grey bandages. In his right hand was a single-edged sword that looked recently constructed. The two most distinguishable features about this man however, was the ivory-white mask that covered the entire front of his face with the exception of his eyes, his medium-length dark hair was in disarray, spiking up all over the top of his head.

The second was the tattered grey cloak that flowed like water behind him.

Jaune quickly realized from the description Ruby had given him that this was Richter Bremen. But seeing him in person was nothing like he imagined. The mask's design made it look like it was a skull more than a mask, and the eyes, they burned an intense orange, almost as if he was looking into the sun. Richter wasn't like any altered he had encountered before.

Still shocked from his sudden appearance, the White Fang that were holding Jaune were swiftly decapitated with one horizontal slash of Richter's blade. The faunus' blood splashed all over the young Arc's face, but he managed to close his eyes just in time to avoid being blinded by it.

Jaune heard the sound of gunfire as he wiped his face clean with his right sleeve as best as he could. He felt the wind tease his blonde hair as Richter passed by him. Realizing he was now in between the White Fang soldiers and their target, Jaune dove to the ground, hearing the bullets whizz by above his head. He caught sight of Richter again, a dozen meters behind him with a sword in a soldier's gut. Jaune watched in disbelief as Richter lifted the faunus terrorist off of his feet and tossed him into a group of White Fang that were shooting at him. They went tumbling in a tangle of arms and limbs. The young Arc was certain he heard some bones break as well.

A few of the White Fang began drawing swords, deftly wielding them as they charged at Richter, the grey-cloaked demon. Jaune watched as his eyes glowed bright for a moment, his sword-arm lashing out in a blur, and then one of the Faunus terrorists was staggering back, clutching his bleeding throat. Two more White Fang took his place, they struck at Richter with speed and fervor, but the grey-cloaked demon easily deflected their attacks, not even moving from his spot.

Richter struck like a snake and one of the White Fang soldiers screamed in agony as his right arm was sliced off at the elbow. The second soldier tried to capitalize, but Richter was too quick, crouching under the stab intended for his neck and slicing the soldier in half at the waist. Before the fallen soldiers' bodies had even hit the ground, the grey-cloaked demon was in the air. He landed in the center of a group of White Fang, placed his left palm on the ground and leapt away. The Faunus terrorists opened fire on him, but he stayed just ahead of their barrage. A moment later, an ash-grey glyph glowed under the White Fang group and then detonated.

Jaune witnessed bodies and limbs being tossed from the explosion. Blood and gore stained the snow as Richter continued tearing the White Fang to pieces. The young Arc almost felt sorry for them, except that they were going to take him in to be "Experimented." on. He didn't want to be treated like a guinea pig.

Jaune continued to watch as Richter earned his nickname. He didn't just kill the White Fang, he brutalized them. At one point breaking a soldier's neck with his left hand and swinging the limp body into one of his comrades. The violent displays proved to be unnerving to the hardened faunus soldiers, some were even shouting "Demon!" in fear. Blood continued to stain the snow.

The sound of a chainsaw revving up, drew both Jaune and Richter's attention. The White Fang lieutenant had his chainsaw out, the blades whirring as he wielded the heavy weapon. Richter turned to face the lieutenant fully.

"So the mythical grey-cloaked demon is real." The lieutenant stated. "You don't seem that scary to me." He sneered. Jaune expected Richter to respond, but the grey-cloaked demon remained silent.

The lieutenant charged in with his chainsaw, moving surprisingly quick for a man his size. He attacked Richter with a downward diagonal slash from his left to his right. The grey-cloaked demon used his sword to angle the chainsaw away from his body. But the lieutenant immediately swung it back in the opposite direction, aiming for Richter's left armpit, seeking to slice off his left arm and his head in the process. Richter leaned heavily to his right and the chainsaw barely missed.

The grey-cloaked demon brought his right elbow forward, crashing it into the lieutenant's left cheekbone, the strength of the blow was so great, it knocked the big faunus off of his feet. Richter swiftly dashed after the lieutenant, but the faunus had managed to turn his crash landing into a backwards roll. He got to his feet just in time to plant his right foot into Richter's sternum. It was the grey-cloaked demon's turn to be knocked back, but he quickly recovered, performing a backwards flip and landing solidly on his feet. The impact sent snow flying, revealing the grass underneath.

As the two combatants glared at each other, a group of White Fang that had survived Richter's onslaught began to take aim at the grey-cloaked demon's right flank. Jaune saw Richter's glowing eyes flick to his right, so he noticed it too. Taking advantage of his momentary distraction, the White Fang lieutenant rushed towards him, this time sweeping the chainsaw low and going for Richter's legs. The grey-cloaked demon stood his ground, his aura pulsed and he knocked the chainsaw away almost casually with the flick of his sword. The lieutenant was actually knocked back a few steps from the force of the parry.

Less than half a second later, Richter brought his blade back to his right side and through dexterous use of his fingers, spun it in a circular motion. The rapidly spinning blade deflected the shots the white fang soldiers threw at him. The lieutenant, now over his initial shock after being blocked so easily, took to the air. The big faunus leapt high, clearing the treetops and then descended upon Richter like a hammer. Jaune grimaced, although Ruby's friend was strong, in his current predicament he was pinned down. If he kept deflecting the soldiers' bullets the lieutenant would slice him in two, but if he went to parry the lieutenant's attack he would be riddled with bullets. In either situation, death was almost absolute, critical damage that would require a hospital at the least, and there were no hospitals where they were at.

To Jaune's surprise though, none of those scenarios happened. Instead, just before the lieutenant reached striking distance with his chainsaw, Richter swiftly brought his right arm forward, gears could be heard shifting as the sword became a revolver. One that was aimed directly between the lieutenant's eyes. Jaune frowned, didn't Ruby say his weapon's gun-form was a pistol? He must have changed it.

Two things happened in that moment, the first was that the big faunus took a bullet right in the forehead. Even with his aura taking a portion of the hit, the bullet still cut into his skin. Blood flowed freely from the wound as the lieutenant was sent sailing away from Richter. The second thing that happened was that Ruby's friend used the recoil of the shot to move himself backwards, effectively putting him out of the line of fire from the soldiers. It was only for a second.

But a second was all the grey-cloaked demon needed.

Richter hastily rushed forward, weaving a complicated pattern of sword slashes in front of him as he ran through the group of white fang soldiers. The grey-cloaked demon sliced the faunus terrorists into pieces, blood drenching his clothes. A single trail of blood ran down the center of his mask and it was at that moment that Jaune began to wonder if there really was a human being left in there, or if a monster had inherited the shell of Ruby's friend.

One of the white fang soldiers had survived Richter's attack. His right leg was a bloody stump as he desperately tried to crawl away from the grey-cloaked demon. Richter quickly put a stop to it by planting his right boot onto the soldier's back, taking aim with his revolver at the back of the faunus' skull.

"Please…!" The soldier begged in a panicked voice. "We were only….!"

"Planning more experiments, more nightmares." Richter interrupted in a distorted voice, pulling the trigger on his revolver. Dots of blood splattered onto his mask, but he remained unaffected by it. He continued on, making his way toward the lieutenant.

Jaune returned his attention to the big faunus, who's mask had been shattered by Richter's near point-blank shot. To the young Arc, he looked surprisingly young. The lieutenant's face was a crimson mask as he crawled on his arms and legs towards his chainsaw, which was embedded in the ground a few meters in front of him. Richter was walking towards him at a brisk pace, but it was questionable if he would reach the lieutenant before he got to his weapon. Jaune's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, Richter could move faster, why wasn't he?

The grey-cloaked demon arrived at the lieutenant's feet just as he grabbed the chainsaw. The big faunus let out a satisfied grunt and with just his hand, ripped the chainsaw out of the ground. The lieutenant twisted around, his right arm fully extended as he swung for the fences, aiming for Richter's waist in a horizontal swing.

Yet Richter stood his ground.

Jaune grit his teeth, mentally berating Ruby's friend, the chainsaw would cut him in half! But that wasn't what happened. Instead, Richter reached out with his left hand and caught the blade of the chainsaw with it. The young Arc saw the muscles in the grey-cloaked demon's left arm flex.

And the blade of the chainsaw broke in half.

The lieutenant had time to be shocked for only a moment as Richter sent him flying backwards with a powerful kick to the abdomen, bouncing him off the trunk of a pine tree. The lieutenant rose to his hands and knees and threw a glare in Richter's direction. The grey-cloaked demon continued advancing towards him at a deliberate pace.

"…You're trembling…." Richter spoke, shifting his revolver back to sword-form, the lieutenant's eyes widened in response and then narrowed into a scowl as he tried to throw a punch at the grey-cloaked demon. However, Richter easily dodged the sloppy attack by sidestepping to his right. The big faunus lost his balance and collapsed face-first into the snow. Jaune watched as Richter reversed his grip on his sword, pointing the blade at the big faunus' spine. "…Are you afraid of me now?"

Jaune cringed as the lieutenant's scream of torment echoed through the woods when Richter plunged the sword into his back.

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: Welp, Richter's back. Pyrrha's being elusive to Jaune, and Ren, Nora and Ruby still have to finish off that altered. The White Fang have a lab hidden near Turthus, what nightmares could it hold? Lots of stuff going on that will be delved into next chapter!  
**


	21. An Arc's Journey 4

**A/N: So this chapter was mostly inspired from too much of the game "The Evil Within." More specifically, Chapter 10 of the game, where you are venturing through an industrial heater and creepy music is looping in the background while you are fighting monsters.**

 **Although Richter is back, this is still very much Jaune's story, and his team(Plus Ruby.) Still have a part to play in it, don't worry!**

 **Also, would like to say the story is now over 4k views, so thanks for everyone that's reading!**

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

 _One year before the 80_ _th_ _Vytal Festival Tournament_

 _"Uh, Jasmine? Why did you bring me here?" Jaune asked his sister. They were on the high cliff of Mountain Arkahn, which overlooked the Arc family home. Looking below, Jaune could see their house which was a tiny spec and a slightly larger dot which marked the lake. The trees surrounding the house almost looked like broccoli, but he quickly swept that thought away, thinking about food right now would make him hungry and they weren't going to eat for a few hours._

 _"What do you mean?" Jasmine asked, "Aren't you enjoying the view?"_

 _Jaune looked over at his sister, who had undid the bun she usually had on the back of her head. The wind was rushing through her hair and her azure eyes were closed. A small smile played across her lips as she let out a content sigh. She was really enjoying it up here. Unlike him, high places made him nervous, he didn't have the best balance and knowing that there was a possibility he could slip and fall to his death didn't help matters._

 _"Yeah uh, I mean it's great and all, but isn't it a little…you know….dangerous?" He asked, doing his best not to sound nervous._

 _"Mountain Arkahn has been here since our ancestor's time. It's not like it's going to cast us into the jagged rocks below." Jasmine explained, she turned to him with a reassuring smile, "That's never happened."_

 _Jaune let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, okay."_

 _"Except for our great-great Uncle Harold, one day a strong gust of wind just shot him off the cliff, swatted him away like he was a fly. No one ever heard from him again."_

 _Jaune audibly gulped "W-What!?"_

 _Jasmine's smile turned mischievous, "Gotcha."_

 _The younger Arc pouted, "Not funny." Jasmine responded with a chuckle. "Did you just bring me here to troll me?"_

 _The older Arc sibling shook her head. "No, no. Today I have bigger plans than that."_

 _"Oh joy." Jaune replied dryly._

 _Jasmine turned to face him fully. "Close your eyes and hold out your hands."_

 _Jaune raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You're not handing me a snake are you? Because Prescilla did that last week and my heart has yet to beat normally again."_

 _Jasmine laughed again. "I'm not handing you a snake Jaune, honest. Just close your eyes and hold out your hands."_

 _Jaune reluctantly complied, following his sister's instructions. He nearly fell forward as something heavy was placed in his hands, but fortunately he recovered. Opening his eyes, the younger Arc found himself staring at a sword in a white metal sheathe._

 _"Whoa. What is this?" He asked._

 _"This…is Crocea Mors." Jasmine started, pointing at the weapon in his hand. "…It was a weapon our great-great Grandfather wielded during the Great War. He won many battles with this blade."_

 _"A-and you're giving it to me? You sure that's a good idea?"_

 _"I am." She responded with no hesitation. "Perhaps it'll be the first step for you."_

 _"The first step for what?"_

 _"Becoming a huntsman."_

 _Jaune looked his sister in the eye then. "You really think I can do it?"_

 _Jasmine placed her hands on his shoulders. "Jaune, I know you can. There is a path laid out for you. It may be a path less trod upon, but it's still there. All you have to do is find it."_

 _Jaune was surprised in his sister's confidence in him. Out of all his siblings, he was the one who failed the most. While the rest of his sisters could make wielding a greatsword similar to dancing, he made it look like he was a drunken brawler that was one tequila shot away from eating the floor with his face. He stared down at Crocea Mors once more, perhaps it would be different with this weapon._

 _"Thanks." He said and meant it. Most of his conversations with family were usually him getting berated, it was nice to be praised for a change._

 _The two Arcs sat in comfortable silence at the cliff's edge. Jaune tried to savor his time with Jasmine as much as he could, she would be heading back to Beacon soon to finish her final year there. Once he was gone it would be back to belittlement by his father and he was not looking forward to that in the least._

 _"The wind is nice isn't it?" Jasmine suddenly spoke._

 _Jaune nodded. "Yeah."_

 _"I come up here sometimes. I like to sit here with my head raised high and my eyes closed tightly as the wind flows by." She confided, "It almost feels like I'm flying, like the weight of all my problems are lifted from my shoulders and I'm free."_

 _Deciding to try it out, Jaune closed his eyes and let the wind tease his face and hair. The younger Arc's lips curled upward into a smile almost instantly. It really did feel like he was flying._

 **VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present Day_

Jaune knew what an interrogation was. He had seen it on many cop shows he'd watch growing up. Usually it would involve one cop getting extremely animated and passionate and yelling in the person's face. Almost every time the person being interrogated would then give up the information the cops needed. The type of interrogation he was witnessing from Richter Bremen was nothing like that. It was far more brutal.

"Cinder Fall…." Richter hissed the name at the downed faunus, who was pinned down with the grey-cloaked demon's sword in his back. "…Where is she?"

"I-I don't know!" The lieutenant replied in a pained voice. Richter twisted the blade and the lieutenant cried out in pain. "I swear it! Our leader is looking for her as well!"

"You mean Adam Taurus?" Richter asked.

"Yes!"

"Why is your leader looking for her?"

"Because she botched our original plan to take down Vale! Cinder's identity was compromised and her infiltration failed! She didn't live up to her end of the deal! And so Adam moved on to plan B!"

"Plan B?"

"Cinder went missing a few months ago, and since then Adam has taken over the labs she had hidden throughout Vale. He's taken her research and is trying to copy it on a grand scale."

"The altered, so he plans to create an army then."

"That's only half his plan."

Richter's eyes widened slightly, then narrowed. "Really? Please fill me in on the other half, I'm very curious."

"I don't know what it is! All I know was that he was looking for something in one of these labs."

"You sure you don't know what your leader was looking for?"

"I don't I swear! I've told you everything! The database at the lab might have more though!"

Jaune watched as Richter wrenched his sword out of the white fang lieutenant's back. The big faunus took in deep lungfuls of air, his unmasked face contorted in pain. He looked up at the grey-cloaked demon, his eyes wide with uncertainty. "Does this mean you'll let me go?"

Richter responded by cocking his head to one side. "I never said anything about letting you go." His right hand was wrapped around the lieutenant's throat before Jaune could even blink. With one arm, Richter hoisted the big faunus up. Ruby's friend wasn't tall enough to pull the lieutenant off of his feet, but his grip on the faunus' neck was ironclad. It was an unreal sight, to see such a big faunus being manhandled by a guy barely taller than Ruby.

The white fang lieutenant tried in vain to free himself from Richter's grip. Grey flames appeared on the shorter man's right hand and quickly spread to the big faunus' body, engulfing him. Jaune cringed as the lieutenant's screams of agony reached a new fervor. The young Arc watched in horrified fascination as the grey flames devoured the lieutenant. Richter inhaled deeply and the smoke from the flames and charred corpse of the lieutenant was pulled towards his face, where it seeped in through the eyeholes and the edges of his mask. In a handful of seconds, the lieutenant's body was gone along with the grey flames. Jaune blinked slowly and took a careful step backwards, maybe if he was quiet enough, Richter would forget his presence.

Luck was not with the young Arc as Richter's head snapped to his left to spot him. Jaune instantly froze in his tracks, like a deer caught in the headlights.

"You're not White Fang..." Richter observed.

"Nope, not me, no sir, I'm a huntsman." Jaune nervously blurted out.

The orange glowing eyes behind the grey-cloaked demon's mask narrowed. "What's a huntsman doing out here all alone in the middle of nowhere?"

Jaune took a deep breath, this was the moment of truth. "I'm here on a mission with Ruby Rose."

"Ruby…" Richter breathed, his tone had changed and for the first time he actually almost sounded like a human being. He placed his left hand on his left temple and shook his head slightly, as if shaking some cobwebs out. "...No, it's too soon." He mumbled to himself, the grey-cloaked demon returned his gaze to the young Arc. "What is your name huntsman?"

"Jaune, Jaune Arc." He informed the grey-cloaked demon.

"Jaune, since you know Ruby I'll give you this warning." Richter said, sheathing his sword. "Leave. Now."

"I can't. We still have a mission to complete." Jaune informed him. "You're heading to this secret lab right? Well if that lab is full of experiments and soon-to-be altered then it's our mission to destroy them, we can't ignore that. They're a danger to Turthus and the communication tower."

"Don't worry." Richter replied, turning his back to the young Arc. "Nothing in that lab will survive. Just stay out of my way." He finished coldly, leaping away, his tattered grey cloak billowing in the wind.

Jaune watched as he dipped below the treeline and out of sight, his mind racing. He didn't doubt Richter's ability to destroy everything in the White Fang's secret lab. Theoretically, it would make his team's mission in Turthus much easier. Except there was one glaring problem.

Pyrrha was headed in the same direction Richter was moving now.

The young Arc bit his lip. If Pyrrha ended up making it to the lab, then she'd be right in Richter's crosshairs. Things could get very messy very fast and Pyrrha could wind up getting hurt, or worse. No, he needed to head to that lab, to be sure she was safe. But before he did, he needed to find Crocea Mors and his scroll. He would most definitely need backup.

Doing his best not to breathe in the smell of blood, Jaune searched the bodies of the dead White Fang. One of them had to have his stuff. After a good fifteen minutes of searching, he found Crocea Mors in the severed arm of a White Fang soldier. His scroll he might never have found had someone not tried to call it. The familiar ring tone of Ruby calling him filled his ears and he quickly pinpointed the source, picking the scroll up out of the snow, near another dead body. The screen was cracked and Jaune winced, he hoped it still worked.

"Ruby, are you guys alright?" Jaune asked as he answered his scroll.

 _"Jaune! Yeah we're fine, we took down the altered. I'm having a real hard time hearing you though."_ Ruby replied.

"My scroll got damaged, might be messing with the signal."

" _Where are you? We found the body of the other altered, but you're not here."_

"I got captured by the White Fang."

 _"Did you just say White Fang?"_

"Yes, they have a lab hidden somewhere to the west of Turthus." He hesitated for a moment. "Also, I saw your friend Richter, he killed the White Fang who had me captive."

 _"Richter's here!?"_ Ruby exclaimed, Jaune had to hold the scroll away from his ear for a moment due to the loudness of the exclamation.

"He is, so is Pyrrha. I have to follow him, head west from Turthus and you should catch up with me."

 _"Jaune you're breaking up, what about Pyrrha and Turthus?"_

Jaune went to repeat his instructions, but a beep signaled that the call was dropped. The young Arc tried to call Ruby again, but found the device was unresponsive. He let out a curse and pocketed the scroll. He was on his own for now, hopefully enough of his message got through.

Jaune quickly picked up Richter's trail, all he had to do was find the warped trees. Ruby's friend was not being discreet, but then again when you rip a chainsaw apart with your bare hands, you could probably forego discretion. The young Arc kept up a brisk pace, senses alert for any threats, grimm, White Fang, or otherwise.

Eventually, he came to an alcove, deep into a hill. Within the alcove was tall, thick steel door. At the bottom-center of the door was a hole large enough to fit an Ursa through. It looked like Richter's work. Jaune took a deep breath as he gathered his thoughts. Richter was here, but had Pyrrha come the same way? Or did she wander off elsewhere?

"Jaune!" Pyrrha's voice sounded from beyond the steel door. The young Arc instantly went on alert, that answered that question. While he was overjoyed to have found Pyrrha once more, now things were going to get complicated. As Richter was in the lab too.

"Pyrrha! I'm coming!" Jaune shouted back, he wasn't sure if she could hear him, but it didn't hurt to try. He ran through the hole in the steel door and found himself on a concrete ramp sloping downwards. He followed the ramp down to another steel door with a similar hole as the first one and charged through.

Right in to a nightmare.

What Jaune had walked into couldn't be a secret lab. It was far too dark, with Dust lamps at fixed intervals on the ceiling all the way down the current hallway. The lamps did little to stave off the foreboding darkness, which almost seemed alive. Bits of rust clung to the metal walls, floor and ceiling, Jaune could also hear the clinking of chains echoing further in. The clinking was drowned out however, by the screams of people in torment, too many voices for him to keep track of. Drawing Crocea Mors and attaching the shield firmly to his left hand, Jaune continued cautiously down the dimly-lit hallway.

Several thick metal doors lined the walls. The doors had small rectangular viewpoints that a person of average height could use to see inside. Jaune peered inside one and nearly recoiled in horror at what he saw. Beyond the metal door was a man hanging from the ceiling by chains. Several metal hooks were dug into the flesh of his arms. Jaune also spotted numerous plastic tubes attached to his torso. That wasn't the worst part however, the man raised his head out of the shadows and into the sole light in the small room. Half the man's face was normal, but the other half was a black melted mess, the flesh looking more like wax than skin. The man locked his bloodshot eyes on Jaune and croaked out two words through cracked lips.

"Kill me…."

This time Jaune did backpedal away from the door, his mind running a mile a minute. What was this place? This was supposed to be a hidden lab? Was this how altered were being created? What a sick and twisted thing to do to someone.

"Jaune!"

The young Arc jolted upward at his name. That was Pyrrha again, she sounded further into the lab. He sprinted down the hallway, not failing to note that some of the doors in the hallway were ripped off of their hinges. He caught sight of grey flames burning the bodies within. Richter had been here. He needed to find Pyrrha before Ruby's friend did.

One of the doors on Jaune's right was suddenly blown off its hinges, crashing hard into right shoulder and knocking him onto the left side of the hallway. The young Arc tried to get up, but quickly found himself straddled by a woman who's mouth was full of needle-like teeth the color of ebony. She tried to sink her teeth into his face, but he was able to get his shield up to divert her just to the right of his neck. The woman let out an inhumane shriek and raised her head high, preparing to try and bite into him again. Seeing his opening, Jaune let out a battlecry fueled by panic and fear, piercing the woman's throat with his sword. Dark warm blood flowed down his right arm as he shoved her now limp form off of himself.

Jaune had just got back to his feet when he was knocked off of them again by something hitting his shield. Landing on his back, the young Arc hastily propped himself up on his elbows to find what had hit him. He was greeted by the sight of a man with six eyes and what looked like a smaller version of the tail of a deathstalker attached to his back. The six-eyed man opened his mouth and let out a roar that no human vocal cords would ever be able to replicate. The scorpion-like tail darted forth, heading straight for Jaune's chest.

The young Arc managed to roll to his left to avoid getting impaled. He quickly got to his feet, just in time to see the six-eyed man lunging forward with his tail again. This time however, he was ready. Planting his feet. Jaune took the full force of the blow with his shield, this time not moving at all. The six-eyed man howled in frustration and executed three more stabs with his tail in quick succession. Jaune blocked the first two with his shield and on the third stab he sidestepped to his right and brought his sword down on the stretched tail, severing it.

The six-eyed man let out an inhuman scream of pain. Jaune did his best to ignore it and rushed forward, opening up the disfigured man's chest with a diagonal slash. The six-eyed man fell onto his back, his body twitching a few times before going still.

Jaune did his best not to look back at the two things he had just killed. They used to be people, and the White Fang had twisted them into something very unnatural. How could one sink so low as to do that to another living being? He couldn't fathom it. He looked down at his left hand and saw it was shaking. Jaune quickly realized he was afraid, but he swept the fear aside, closing his left hand into a fist. He couldn't afford to let his fear run rampant, not now.

The young Arc continued down the hallway, which eventually started branching out in different directions. Jaune surmised the branching paths led to other wings of the lab, normally this would make searching for Pyrrha more difficult. But he could hear the sounds of combat coming from the corridor on his left. Sounds accompanied by Pyrrha's voice as she let out battlecries, apparently she was fighting quite the intense battle. Judging by the grey flames he found periodically sprinkled down the corridor, he suspected it was with Richter. Which meant he needed to hurry.

Jaune found his progress impeded by more human and faunus experiments. Their twisted forms and nightmarish shrieks tested his courage as he dispatched them. Parts of the corridor were starting to come apart, burying certain rooms and people under a pile of metal and concrete. After a handful of minutes, the young Arc found his progress completely halted by a pile of rubble blocking the corridor. He frowned at the sight, he could maybe stick his hand through an opening at the top of the rubble, but that was it.

The sounds of blades clashing alerted Jaune to someone fighting on the other side of the rubble. He peered through the small opening at the top of the debris to see red hair flowing through the air. Jaune's breath caught in his throat as he saw Pyrrha land in a crouching position. It looked like something had knocked her back.

"Pyrrha!" He exclaimed. She turned her green eyes towards him and he saw a small smile play on her lips.

Which quickly turned into a frown. Confusion swirled in Jaune's head, why was she frowning? Did he do something wrong?

He got his answer as a gout of grey flame sped towards Pyrrha, who nimbly side-flipped out of its path. She landed and continued deeper into the lab, away from Jaune.

"Pyrrha wait! I can help!" The young Arc shouted, extending his hand through the opening in the debris as if he could pull her back through sheer willpower alone. Moments later, a familiar figure in a tattered grey-cloak appeared in the same room Pyrrha had just occupied. Richter surveyed the destruction he was causing, the way his eyes darted back and forth, he seemed to be looking for something.

"Richter listen to me!" Jaune yelled to him, Richter cast him a sidelong glance. "Pyrrha is my friend! She's not your enemy!"

"There are no friends in this hell of a lab, Jaune, surely you've seen that by now." Richter replied.

"Pyrrha's different! She hasn't been experimented on! She's normal! She won't try to hurt you if you don't attack her." Jaune told him. The grey-cloaked demon looked at him for a long moment and the young Arc felt himself holding his breath, had he got through to Richter?

"I gave you a warning to leave." Richter suddenly spoke. "You should have taken it." With that, the grey-cloaked demon turned his back on Jaune and continued down the corridor Pyrrha had just went down.

Anger and fear spiked within Jaune. "Richter! Don't do it! Don't you dare hurt Pyrrha! If you do I swear to everything that is holy that I will hunt you down!" Richter didn't respond, continuing down the corridor until he was out of sight. "RICHTER!" Jaune screamed, slamming his right fist into the rubble in frustration. What the hell was wrong with that guy? Was he really Ruby's friend?

Jaune took a deep calming breath. He wasn't going to save Pyrrha if he went into a frenzy. The corridor was blocked, but Richter had to have made it past through conventional means, he wasn't a ghost who could just slip through the walls. Backtracking, the young Arc checked all the open steel doors in the corridor's walls. After a minute or two of searching, he found what he was looking for. In one of the empty rooms there was a hole large enough for a person to walk through. His shield ready, Jaune ventured through the hole, which led to a tunnel that went back towards the blocked portion of the corridor. Careful not to step on any of the lingering grey flames, Jaune walked through the tunnel, occasionally stepping over piles of ash that had once been a sentient being.

The young Arc was rewarded with making it to the other side of the blocked corridor. Now in the same large square room that Richter and Pyrrha had occupied a few minutes before. He felt his spirits lift, he was catching up.

He was just about to head after them when two large beings dropped in from the ceiling, effectively blocking him from pursuing Richter. They looked to be human, but their proportions were all wrong. They're arms and legs were too long, their torsos too small and there was some sort of tumor that was growing out of a large portion of their back. Long dark hair covered milky white eyes and the only sound to come out of their cracked lips was growling. Each of the brutes was carrying a club as tall as they were in their right hands. And as Jaune watched, they raised those clubs in preparation to squash him.

The young Arc growled, he didn't have time for this.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: Next Chapter: Jaune desperately tries to save Pyrrha from Richter. Does he succeed? Does he fail? Or is there a third outcome?**

 **See you then!**


	22. An Arc's Journey 5

**EDIT: Apologies, didn't put in the chapter name and had to delete and repost!**

 **A/N: I almost didn't get this done on time, but finished it late last night. These pair of stories will break over 100k words as of this chapter, something I haven't done in a while, it's been quite a ride!  
**

 **Haven't had any reviews in a while, but people are still following, favoriting, and reviewing, so I must be doing something right. A big thanks to those who are reviewing, favoriting and following though, it's definitely a motivating factor to get these chapters out.  
**

 **Anyways we are approaching the finale soon, and I'm excited to get the ideas in my brain out into text for you all to see. I hope you'll enjoy it. Now onwards with the story!**

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

 _Less than a year before the 80_ _th_ _Vytal Festival Tournament._

 _The sun was starting to set at the Arc family home. The bright orange star which spread its warmth across Remnant cast an orange glow as it began to disappear over the horizon. In the home's courtyard, striking a wooden training dummy slightly bigger than him, was Jaune Arc._

 _The teenager was practically snarling and every strike on the dummy only seemed to fuel his frustration. Armed with a wooden practice sword, he wasn't using Crocea Mors like he wanted to because if he did, they would run out of training dummies and then his father would be displeased._

 _His father._

 _He was at the point where he could care less if his father was angry at him. His father was ALWAYS angry with him, angry and disappointed. Which would be fine if Jaune was a lazy good-for-nothing son, but the young Arc was legitimately trying here. Every time he asked the old man to train him, his father would look at Jaune like he just brought a thousand-year curse on the family. How the hell did he have a right to be disappointed when he couldn't even be bothered to help his own son!?_

 _Jaune brought his blade awkwardly down on the dummy's head and the wooden sword flew from his fingers. He couldn't believe it, disarmed by an inanimate object. The frustration he felt within him boiled over and he grabbed the dummy and pushed it over in a fit of rage. It fell onto the grass rather loudly._

 _"Whoa what did that dummy ever do to you?" He heard Jasmine ask. Jaune could see out of the corner of his eye that his elder sister was leaning on the training dummy to his left. But he was too angry to respond. "Wow something must really have you riled up if you won't even joke with me."_

 _It had been months since Jasmine had given him Crocea Mors, since then she had been going on more and more missions. Although she visited whenever she could, he was beginning to see her less and less. Each time he saw Jasmine he saw that she looked more and more tired, but not physically._

 _"It's dad." Jaune finally answered when he felt calm enough._

 _"Still not agreeing to train you?" She inquired._

 _"He won't budge!" He exclaimed. "He keeps saying that I won't be able to handle being a huntsman! But how does he know when he won't even teach me a single blasted lesson!"_

 _Jasmine looked at him with a strangely neutral expression. "Jaune, what does being a huntsman mean to you?"_

 _"It means protecting lives and slaying monsters. It means getting to travel the world and see what Remnant has to offer. It means getting to go on heroic adventures and saving the day." He answered without hesitation._

 _Jasmine kept staring at him, her lips pursed, something she did when she was having a mental debate in her head. After a few moments she spoke. "Yes, becoming a huntsman means being able to do those things." Her lips curled downwards into a frown. "However, acts of heroism and selflessness come at a price."_

 _Jaune shook his head. "Anything would be better than staying here."_

 _Jasmine broke eye contact with him. "I don't know about that. It's pretty safe here."_

 _He snorted, "Yeah, safe and boring."_

 _"Outside this house, beyond Vale, Remnant is a harsh place." She said, getting a faraway look in her eyes, after a few long seconds she looked him in the eye again. "Jaune maybe you should... Maybe you should stay here a little longer..."_

 _The words barely left her mouth when he angrily growled. "Are you kidding me Jasmine!?" He said, incredulous. "You're on dad's side now, is that it!?"_

 _The elder Arc calmly shook her head. "That's not what I'm saying and you know it. Dad's harsh, but in his own strict way, he's trying to protect you."_

 _Jaune jabbed his right index finger at his chest. "I'm sixteen, soon to be seventeen, I don't need his protection anymore." He sighed and knelt down to grab the training dummy he had tipped over. "I want to be a huntsman more than anything Jasmine." He hoisted the dummy back to its original position. "Beacon is going to have another round of first-year students starting in a few months. I want to be one of them."_

 _"Jaune, there's no way you can get into Beacon on your own."_

 _"I know." He looked at her then. "But don't you have a friend who's pretty good at forgery?"_

 _Jasmine's eyes narrowed. "I'm not going to help you cheat your way into Beacon."_

 _"Please Jasmine." He pleaded. "I know the world out there is a much harsher place." His face hardened. "But I think it's an even harsher existence sitting here stifled."_

 _Jasmine pursed her lips again and Jaune waited anxiously. This was his last shot and it was a long one. He was a kid with no training trying to get into the most elite huntsman academy in Vale. That thought had not eluded him, but if he had to stay at this house hitting targeting dummies with wooden swords for one more damn year he'd go insane._

 _Finally his older sister closed her eyes and let out a long sigh. "If this is what you really want, I'll talk to my friend."_

 _Jaune felt like he could touch the setting sun he leapt so high, letting out a very excited cheer at the height of his jump. He was going to Beacon!_

 _"But know this." Jasmine said, interrupting his celebration. "The world of a huntsman is not all glory. It can be a terrible and downright cruel way of life." Her face turned deathly serious. Enough so that it killed some of Jaune's buzz. "The freedoms and luxuries the four kingdoms enjoy come at a price."_

 _Despite the sense of foreboding his sister gave off, Jaune still couldn't stop smiling. "Thanks Jasmine, you won't regret this, I'll make you, father and the rest of the family proud, I promise."_

 **VVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Present Day._

Jaune rolled to his left and felt the wind from one of the brutes' clubs as it smashed into the ground he had occupied a moment before. As the young Arc got to his feet, he spotted the brute nearest to him following through with his assault. The giant monster swept its club across the ground horizontally, heading straight for Jaune. He nimbly leapt over the swing and was about to strike at the brute's head with his sword when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. Jaune looked to his right to see the second brute swinging his club right for his torso.

The young Arc only had a second to bring his shield up to take the blow. Sparks flew off Jaune's shield as he was propelled into the wall behind him. The pain in his spine was just making itself known when the first brute planted his left foot into his shield, embedding him further in the wall.

His frustration getting the better of him, Jaune activated his semblance, in a brilliant flash of white light, the first brute was pushed away from him by an invisible force. The club-wielding monster lost it's balance and fell onto it's back like a tree that was just chopped down. Jaune stepped out of the hole the brutes had put him in, his lips peeled back into a snarl. Every second he wasted here was another second for Richter to catch up to Pyrrha. He needed to end this fight as quick as possible.

The second brute stepped forward, the club in his right hand coming down in a horizontal arc towards Jaune's left flank. The young Arc summoned his aura and held up his shield. The brute's club collided with the shield and was stopped cold. Jaune immediately plunged his sword into the brute's gut. It doubled over and let out something resembling a grunt. Reaching up with his left foot, Jaune kicked the brute in the abdomen, pushing the giant monster away and pulling his sword out in one smooth motion.

Jaune' s mouth opened in a battlecry as he charged at the second brute, but the giant monster wasn't as incapacitated as he thought. With it's left hand, the brute delivered a brutal backhand that slammed into the left side of Jaune's face. The young Arc felt himself get knocked off his feet as he was sent tumbling to his right. He bounced off the wall a couple of times before eventually coming to a stop, slamming his back and the back of his skull into another of the room's walls.

While Jaune was trying to shake the stars out of his vision, he reevaluated his strategy. He could use his semblance and brute force his way past these things, but then he'd be too taxed to be much use to Pyrrha when he found Richter again. However, the brutes hit hard and were deceptively fast. He hated to admit it, but he had to take them seriously. Should he chip away at them and wear them down? No, that would take too long. Go all out on the offense? No, too risky. An idea suddenly popped into the young Arc's head and he smirked, it just might work.

The second brute raised its club over its head and Jaune braced himself. The giant monster brought it down on the young Arc's skull, or it would have, had Jaune not fired his shield from his arm. The chain attached to the shield looped around the brute's neck and the young Arc reeled himself in, landing on the brute's shoulder blades. He stabbed Crocea Mors into the nape of the monster's neck and it let out what he could only imagine was a pained shriek. While he did some damage, it wasn't enough to kill the brute, for that part of the plan he needed to have some patience.

The second brute began trying to wildly buck him off, but thanks to the chain around its neck and his sword, Jaune was locked in pretty tight. The first brute had recovered and was now shuffling towards them from behind, its club raised high in preparation to strike. Jaune smirked, just how he thought it'd play out.

As the first brute began to bring its club down, Jaune pulled his sword out of the second brute and leapt away at the last moment. Instead of the first brute's club turning him into a bloody paste it crushed the second brute's skull. The giant monster went limp and fell to its knees before unceremoniously falling onto its belly, unmoving. Jaune grinned in satisfaction as he began reeling his shield back to his arm with the chain, one down.

Unfortunately, the first brute moved swifter than the young Arc had anticipated. It brought its left foot forward and field goal kicked Jaune right in the gut. The young Arc felt the wind flow out of his lungs from the hit, he had been unable to get his shield back in time to block it. He slammed into a wall with his shoulder blades, hitting hard enough to dislodge some debris from the ceiling, which fell on him as he landed on his hands and knees on the floor. The debris was heavy and Jaune found he didn't have the strength to shrug it off of his back. Through a small hole in the pile of rubble that he was buried in, he saw the first brute closing in.

The frustration began to set in again. He was not going to be killed in some creepy lab while Pyrrha was in danger. No way in hell.

With newfound strength, Jaune managed to move his shield-arm, raising it protectively over his head just as the first brute came down with its club. The monster's heavy weapon crashed into the rubble, slamming into the young Arc's shield. The force of the blow scattered the debris that had pinned him. He half-expected the shield to buckle from the force behind the attack.

But it held.

Quickly getting over his shock, Jaune tightened his grip on his sword. With one mighty horizontal swing, the young Arc cut the brute's legs out from under it. The brute fell onto its left side and Jaune wasted no time, hastily maneuvering himself so he was behind the giant monster. He plunged Crocea Mors into the tumor on the brute's back, the monster seizing up and letting out a death rattle before finally expiring.

Jaune doubled over, his hands on his knees as he greedily drew in air to his lungs. That had been more difficult than he had anticipated, but it looks like his training with Ozpin was paying off. Two tough enemies slain all by himself. Now he just had to deal with Richter.

The sounds of battle echoed through the lab as Jaune ran through the corridor that Pyrrha and Richter had ventured through minutes before. He met no more opposition, just a trail of burned or cut down bodies. The smell of blood was thick in the air and Jaune did his best to breathe through his mouth.

"Pyrrha! I'm coming!" He shouted, gaining speed as the sounds of fighting drew closer. The young Arc heard his red-haired teammate cry out in pain, followed by the sound of something heavy thudding into a wall. He grit his teeth as he pushed himself to move even faster. He had to make it in time!

Jaune pinpointed the battle just beyond a thick steel door that had its top hinges ripped off, causing it to slant across the doorway leading into the room the fight was taking place in. Using his shield like a battering ram, Jaune slammed the steel door out of his way, ripping it off its remaining hinge and sending it into the wall directly across from him. His eyes widened at the sight that greeted him.

Richter's left hand was wrapped around Pyrrha's neck. He had pinned her against the northernmost wall, his blade pointed at her neck, less than a meter away. She was covered in bruises and her teeth were clenched in a grimace as Richter held her firmly. She didn't look like she'd be able to defend against Richter's finishing blow.

"Get away from her!" Jaune roared, racing across the room in record speed. He deflected Richter's sword upwards, knocking it harmlessly into the wall to the left of Pyrrha's head. Richter easily dislodged his weapon and performed a swift overhead slash aimed at Jaune's skull. The young Arc met blade with blade and his knees buckled slightly from the impact. He grimaced, Richter was strong, but he could handle it.

The grey-cloaked demon's eyes flashed behind his mask. "Move." He ordered simply.

"Not on your life!" Jaune responded. The next thing he knew he was sailing backwards through the air, impacting what he guessed was the eastern wall behind him with such force that he saw spots in his vision. As Jaune rose tentatively back to his feet, he decided to reevaluate his previous assessment.

Richter was really freaking strong.

"It wasn't a suggestion." Richter replied, He slammed Pyrrha hard enough into the northern wall to cause cracks to spider out from her point of impact. Ruby's friend released the scarlet-haired huntress from his grip and she collapsed into a heap at his feet.

Jaune saw red as he charged towards Richter, leading with his shield. He tried to ram the grey-cloaked demon with it, but his opponent was far too nimble, leaping backwards before he could make contact. Richter shifted his sword into a revolver and fired three shots, each one was a ball of grey flame about as large as the palm of Jaune's hand. The young Arc used his shield to block the shots, Dust and smoke billowed forth from where the fireballs impacted, engulfing him in it.

Still, Jaune surged through, parting the smoke and stabbing with Crocea Mors at Richter's midsection. The grey-cloaked demon was still in mid-air and he twisted so that he was parallel to the floor, spinning like a top and maneuvering himself just above Jaune's lunge. Richter descended behind the young Arc and delivered a shot from his revolver that landed right between Jaune's shoulder blades.

The young Arc found his face rushing to meet the ground. His forehead bounced off the floor as he skidded forward, heading right for the western wall. Snarling, Jaune pushed himself off the floor, landing with his feet on the western wall. He straightened his legs and propelled himself back the way he had come, holding his sword high and bellowing a defiant roar at Richter. The grey-cloaked demon responded by standing fast and taking aim with his revolver.

The young Arc grimaced, he had seen Ruby's friend do this same trick against the White Fang lieutenant with effective results. It was too late for him to try and dodge, so there was only one thing for him to do. Raising his left arm, Jaune brought his shield up, if he couldn't dodge the shot, then he'd have to trust his defensive capabilities to block it.

Richter opened fire when Jaune's shield was mere inches away from his revolver. A loud report sounded in the young Arc's ears as his vision became swarmed by smoke. A powerful shockwave sent him sailing backwards, but he managed to land on his feet. Jaune dug his heels in, holding on for dear life as momentum carried him almost to the western wall, where he stopped with his back less than a meter from it. Looking across the room, he saw that Richter had been knocked back in similar fashion, only he had almost crashed into the room's eastern wall. The two combatants glared at each other for a few moments.

Surprisingly, it was Richter who broke the silence. "Why is this girl so important to you?"

"I was only able to make it this far as a huntsman because of her."

Richter glanced at Pyrrha's downed form. "Are you really talking about that girl lying in a heap over there?" He asked skeptically.

Jaune felt his anger spike. "You don't know anything about Pyrrha!" He shouted angrily, rushing at Richter. The grey-cloaked demon mirrored his action, shifting his revolver back into a sword, the two were headed for a collision course at the center of the room.

The two combatants exchanged fierce attacks in the center of the room. While Richter was more agile than Jaune, the young Arc's shield made up for the openings in his defense he would otherwise have. As the two continued to trade blows, Jaune couldn't help, but be unnerved by Richter. It was his eyes, those glowing orange orbs looked disinterested, it was like Ruby's friend was already thinking ahead. Like he was an afterthought.

And it pissed him off.

The young Arc brought Crocea Mors down in a diagonal slash, which Richter nimbly sidestepped, moving to his right flank. He quickly rotated counter-clockwise and stretched out his left arm, bringing it towards Richter's left side in a backhanded strike. The grey-cloaked demon was forced to abandon his attack to block the shield with his left arm, elbow and right hand. Jaune felt his shield-arm get shoved away from his opponent like it was a wet noodle, but he used it to his advantage. The young Arc spun clockwise this time and lashed out with his sword in a horizontal slash. Richter was forced to perform a backwards somersault to avoid being chopped in half.

Jaune pressed his advantage, taking a few more swings at Richter, who kept somersaulting backwards to avoid the attacks. During a backhanded horizontal slash, Richter suddenly threw his sword high into the air and landed on his feet. The grey-cloaked demon caught the outside of Jaune's right wrist with his right hand. To the young Arc, it felt like his right wrist was suddenly caught in a vice grip.

Richter straightened the fingers of his left hand. He struck lightning-fast, like a snake, and Jaune felt his head snap back as his opponent nailed his jaw with a chop. He staggered back a step and nearly lost his lunch as Richter slammed his left palm into his gut. The force of the blow sent him sliding backwards on his feet by several meters. Richter leapt into the air, caught his sword in his right hand as it descended, and brought it down on Jaune's left collarbone in a vicious cut. Blood flowed from the point of attack.

But it wasn't Jaune's blood.

Richter leapt a safe distance away from Jaune, the grey-cloaked demon's eyes widening slightly beneath his mask as he stared at his now bloody right hand. Richter's sword had landed blade-first into the floor behind him, near the southeastern corner of the room. Jaune's eyes widened, Richter was off-guard, he had an opening!

The young Arc stabbed forward with Crocea Mors, aiming for Richter's head. The grey-cloaked demon tried to lean back to avoid getting hit but he was half a second too slow. The tip of Jaune's sword pierced Richter's left cheek, just under the orbital bone, cracks spread across the left side of the grey-cloaked demon's mask as he reeled backwards. Crocea Mors dislodged from Richter's cheek, leaving behind a trail of blood. Jaune tried to stab Richter in the face again, but his opponent hastily leaned to his left and the blade passed by harmlessly to the right of his head.

Richter countered with a left hook, but Jaune was able to crouch under it. The young Arc immediately answered by slamming his shield into Richter's chest. He heard his opponent's distorted voice grunt in pain and was about to strike with Crocea Mors again when Richter suddenly grabbed the top part of his shield with his right hand. Jaune felt himself involuntarily pulled forward and off balance by his opponent, who proceeded to slam the top of his head right between his eyes in a vicious headbutt. A large colorful circle exploded in the center of Jaune's vision as well as the pain to go with it. The young Arc cried out and held his face with his right hand, what the hell was Ruby's friend's head made out of?

Even though Jaune was dazed, he still had enough presence of mind to see Richter turn and head for his sword. Jaune grit his teeth, he wouldn't last too much longer in a straight-up fight, Richter's strength was unnatural, he would outlast him. The young Arc reared his left hand back, there was only one chance and he prayed to whatever powers that watched over man that he would have enough aura to do it. Jaune activated his semblance, but instead of cloaking his entire body, he focused it all on his shield. The kite-shaped piece of metal began glowing white and soon became enshrouded in his aura.

The young Arc returned his attention to his opponent, who was just a few paces from his sword. He had one shot, hopefully his aim was true.

Taking a few running steps, Jaune brought his left hand forward in a throwing motion. The shield slipped from his arm, rocketing towards Richter at breakneck speed. The grey-cloaked demon turned back around and extended his left hand, his aura clashing with the aura from Jaune's shield. For a few moments, it was a standstill.

And then Richter budged a few inches.

Orange glowing eyes widened underneath the grey-cloaked demon's mask as he brought his other hand forward to help stop the young Arc's shield.

And still slid back a few more inches.

"Impossible…!" Richter said in disbelief. Jaune chose not to respond verbally, instead channeling his remaining aura into his shield. A roar escaped from the young Arc's throat that was almost primal. With a last surge of aura, He pushed Richter off his feet, into the eastern wall, and then through it. The impact was so strong the cracks spidered over the whole wall. Smoke and dust billowed out from the hole Richter had made.

Jaune fell to his hands and knees, breathing heavily. That had taken too much out of him, his arms felt like rubber as he fought to keep from eating the floor. But as exhausted as he was, he couldn't help but feel a sense of triumph. He had saved Pyrrha, he had saved the girl he loved.

As if his thoughts summoned her, the scarlet-haired huntress was at his side. Pyrrha's right hand tenderly went to Jaune's left cheek and he lost himself in her green eyes. It was her, after all these months, he had found her again. The long search was finally over.

"You did it Jaune." Pyrrha said softly to him.

Jaune gave her a small laugh. "Yeah, I hurt all over though, being a hero sure can be a pain in the ass sometimes."

Pyrrha smiled, "Being a hero is tough." She leaned forward and Jaune found himself mirroring her action. It had been too long since he tasted her lips. The scarlet-haired huntress suddenly stopped though and the young Arc looked at her questioningly, noticing that something had changed in her smile.

"But being a fool is worse."

Jaune had barely registered what Pyrrha had said when he felt a sharp pain in his stomach. He looked down to discover a sharp piece of metal piercing his gut. It took him a moment to realize there was a hand holding the piece of metal.

And that hand belonged to Pyrrha.

Confusion and pain all whirled around in Jaune's brain like a storm. Pyrrha had stabbed him? But why? Why would she ever do that?

"…Pyrrha?" He managed to say, he felt his strength leaving him as blood began flowing from his gut like a river.

"You poor naïve fool." Pyrrha callously said, standing up. "You actually went this far, it's impressive in a pathetic kind of way."

Jaune's right hand weakly went to the sharp metal buried in his stomach. "….What are you talking about?"

"I guess I should reward you for your blind stupidity, you did save my life after all." Pyrrha said, an uncharacteristic evil smirk on her face. Before Jaune's eyes she began to melt and reform. The scarlet hair turned mint-green, the captivating green eyes turned crimson and her skin darkened. The young Arc stared on in disbelief as he was no longer looking at the form of Pyrrha Nikos.

He was looking at Emerald Sustrai, fugitive of Vale.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: Emerald makes her debut in this story! Poor Jaune, getting trolled by her.**

 **I was in a fighting mood while writing these, so two fight scenes in one chapter :D.**

 **NEXT CHAPTER: Now with free reign in the hidden lab, Emerald begins to set in motion her plans. If she succeeds there will be ramifications that all of Remnant will feel. Will she be stopped before her plans come to fruition? Or is a new era of darkness approaching?**


	23. An Arc's Journey 6

**A/N: Had a little writer's block and worked late into the night last night to get this one finished. But now that hurdle has passed. The rest of the chapters should go by more smoothly.  
**

 **Also, thanks for the 5k views, wow wasn't expecting that. A very pleasant surprise.**

 **VVVVVVVVVVV**

 _Less than a year before the 80_ _th_ _Vytal Festival Tournament._

 _Jaune stared at his scroll for what must have been the hundredth time. But still, there were no new messages from Jasmine. The young Arc sighed, it was a fleeting hope. Several weeks had passed since their last conversation and no one had any clue as to Jasmine's whereabouts. Some were starting to fear the worst. But Jaune refused to believe it. Jasmine was an exceptionally skilled huntress, there was no way she could be…_

 _He shook the thoughts out of his head, swiping his scroll a few times until an official-looking electronic document appeared on his screen. The forged documents that Jasmine had her friend prepare for him. The last gift she had given him…_

 _Jaune growled in frustration at his morose thoughts and pocketed his scroll. The ship to Beacon was leaving soon and he needed to make sure he was on it. There was no need to worry about Jasmine, she was fine. In fact, the next time he saw her, he would show her that her faith in him was not misplaced. He took a deep breath, preparing himself for his next challenge. Making it through the entire flight without puking. He mentally cursed his motion sickness as he boarded the ship, his thoughts shifting towards Beacon and the promises it held for him._

 **VVVVVVVVV**

 _Present Day_

Disbelief gave way to rage and Jaune's lips peeled back into a snarl. "Emerald, how could you…" He was interrupted by the dark-skinned huntress kicking him hard in the jaw, sending him sprawling across the floor.

"How could I not?" Emerald sneered, "The White Fang has kept me prisoner here for weeks. WEEKS of being stuck in this shitty cell while they poked and prodded me with all sorts of needles and drugs. They changed me, turned me into something I'm not and it disgusts me to the very core of my being."

"They experimented on you?" Jaune asked, trying to shake the cobwebs out.

"I guess it wasn't all bad." Emerald replied, starting to pace. "The drugs made my semblance more powerful. Instead of having to see my target, I could change their perception just by touching their mind telepathically." A frown appeared on the dark-skinned fugitive's lips. "Unfortunately, the White Fang had taken measures to protect themselves from my semblance, and I can't read your masked friend's mind. So I needed to find someone else to help me if I was to escape, someone capable of getting past the monstrosities that were birthed here." The frown turned into a grin. "Lo and behold, you were just in range for me to toy with your little mind. Aren't you glad?"

Realization dawned on Jaune. "Your semblance is to make people see illusions."

"That's right and I knew you would battle the underworld itself if it meant saving your little red-haired teammate. It was comical you know, to see you fighting with such conviction, with such vigor and to know what you were fighting for wasn't even real."

"Damn you…."

Emerald grinned ferally. "How does it feel? To know that you've been chasing a phantom this entire time. Does it fill you with sadness? With despair?"

Jaune responded by taking a swing at Emerald with his right hand. Unfortunately, he had dropped Crocea Mors when he got stabbed and didn't have quite the reach that he needed to hit her. Emerald easily dodged his clumsy attack with a small leap backwards.

She sneered at him. "You'll have to do better than that." Jaune was about to reply when something crashed through the eastern wall, something big and covered in grey flames. The young Arc took a closer look, no it wasn't covered in flames, it was constructed by them, in the shape of a dragon's head. It crashed into Emerald's left flank like a truck, sending her through the western wall.

Jaune watched as the fire-constructed dragon coalesced into the shape of Richter Bremen and landed in front of him. The upper-left corner of the grey-cloaked demon's mask had been destroyed, exposing blood-red skin and an eyebrow that was the darkest brown in color. Right now that eyebrow was furrowed in a scowl, his weapon back in his right hand.

"How was that?" Richter mockingly asked the no longer present Emerald. His answer was a groan of pain from the next room over. Jaune looked through the hole in the western wall to see Emerald with several burn marks on her body. She was currently keeping herself propped up with her right hand against a wall while the smoke rolled off her body.

"Geez, you peeled my aura off with one attack. Thought it'd hold up better than that." The dark-skinned fugitive muttered.

"I get it now Jaune." Richter said, the young Arc turning his attention to Ruby's friend. "I was wondering why you were fighting so hard to protect a fugitive of your kingdom. I thought you had lost your damned mind. But it just turns out that it was messed with by this bitch, what is it with crazy girls and green hair? Seems to be a trend." The grey-cloaked demon began walking across the room, heading towards Emerald. "I know your face, but I don't have a name."

"Emerald Sustrai." The dark-skinned fugitive replied, wiping some blood off her lip with her left forearm.

"It's a shame, Emerald Sustrai. That you were unable to delve into my mind." Richter's voice lowered deeply and it almost sounded like he was trying to growl out the words. "You would've known true fear."

Despite her arrogant demeanor, a single line of sweat trailed down the side of Emerald's head. "Cinder was right, you are scary."

"The last time we met, I could tell you had no clue where she was. This time I know you possess knowledge of her location and you're going to give it to me." Richter shifted his weapon to a revolver and pointed it at Emerald. "Otherwise, you will have to adjust to a new life as an amputee."

Emerald smirked, "You'll have to catch me first." Richter responded by taking aim and firing, but despite her battered state, she was nimble enough to evade the shot. Grey flames exploded behind her as she exited the room through its only door and took off down the hall, out their line of sight.

Jaune clenched his teeth together so tightly he thought they'd break. He had been played, following Emerald's phantom of Pyrrha like a lovesick puppy. Just the mere thought of it made him sick. How could he have allowed himself to be fooled like that?

He felt something tighten around his waist and looked down to see a length of grey bandage wrap around his waist. Jaune's eyes found the source and was surprised to see the bandages unraveling from Richter's left forearm. The bandages continued to wrap around him until they covered his entire abdomen, covering the stab wound Emerald had inflicted upon him.

"It's not exactly stitches." Richter admitted. "But it'll prevent you from bleeding out." The bandage broke off, but the grey-cloaked demon's left hands still looked as wrapped as ever.

"I'm such an idiot..." Jaune said.

The grey-cloaked demon's eyes narrowed at him. "You can continue to sit there and beat yourself up over it, letting even more problems pile up on your conscience, or you can stand up and do what you can to fix them."

Jaune didn't even register his words, all he could think of was how fruitless his search had been. "I've been chasing a lie…this whole time…"

He heard a snort of disgust from Richter's direction. "I'm going on ahead, feel free to follow when you've picked yourself up from being a wreck." The sounds of the grey-cloaked footsteps grew quieter until finally, Jaune couldn't hear them at all.

He was now all alone, in a room that should have marked his greatest triumph, it instead became the place of his greatest failure. What an embarrassment he turned out to be. All of that training with Pyrrha, with Ozpin, and the best he could do was get fooled by one of Vale's most wanted fugitives.

The young Arc's hands clenched helplessly into fists. It was pathetic.

He was pathetic.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Richter Bremen cut down another human experiment as it charged him. He had lost count of how many he had killed. Some had begged him for death, which he gave. Some had been suffering so much that the pain had driven them mad. They had attacked him with fervor, but were no match for him. He had the power of a dragon contained in his body after all. A power that constantly tried to compel him to kill everything around him.

He had mostly listened to it, killing everything in his way in his quest to find Cinder Fall. However, when he had met Jaune Arc, it was the first time in months where he had to reign in his desire to kill. The dragon within him did not like that at all. The entire time he had been searching this lab his focus was divided between keeping the urge to slaughter at bay and finding answers. It had been…more difficult than previous searches. The fact that Jaune was Ruby's friend and knowing she was somewhere nearby didn't help either.

A brute began shambling towards him in the half-destroyed hallway he was traversing. With their elongated limbs, blind eyes and nasty tumors on their backs, they were the stuff to fuel nightmares. It struck out with its right hand in a punch and Richter casually blocked it with his blade. Yes, the brutes did indeed fuel nightmares.

But he was a living, breathing nightmare.

His first slash sliced off the brute's right arm at the elbow, the second sliced it in half at the waist, and the third sliced off the brute's head. All three cuts happening in the span of a second. Richter continued on, never breaking stride. He couldn't let Emerald escape, she was the best lead he'd get on Cinder. He wouldn't give up pursuit so easily.

The sound of heavy footsteps came from behind him and Richter turned around to see a second brute shambling towards him at a hasty pace. He growled low in his throat, these things did love to travel in pairs. Before he could strike however, the brute suddenly jerked upward, and a spray of blood expelled from its back. The tall creature suddenly went limp and fell forward, revealing a figure standing on its spine.

Richter recognized the figure, Jaune Arc, his sword buried in the brute's tumor. The blonde huntsman dislodged his sword and looked at him. Richter was surprised to see steel in the young man's azure eyes. Was this really the same guy who was on his knees crying a few minutes ago?

"I'm an absolute wreck." Jaune said, leaping down from the brute, the shadows hiding his eyes. "I can't seem to do anything right today. I've failed to find the girl I love and I failed to apprehend a fugitive of the kingdom I live in." The shadows disappeared from the young Arc's face and Richter saw the scowl etched in his features, his lips set in determination. "But if there's one thing I'm going to get right today it's my duty as huntsman. Turthus' safety cannot be guaranteed while this lab still stands, it must be destroyed."

As Jaune walked past, Richter snorted. "I'm impressed you were able to bounce back so quickly, Jaune Arc."

"It's as you said Richter, I can sit here and mope about what's happened to me or I can stand up and do something about it."

Richter smiled beneath his mask, perhaps Jaune had more spine than he originally thought. "Just do your best not to break those bandages I gave you. I don't want your blood on my cloak."

Jaune smirked at him. "What cloak? Looks more like a ragged towel with holes to me."

Richter felt an eyebrow twitch. "There is a monster living inside me, a monster that is trying to get me to kill you. Please do not give me any extra incentives."

Jaune gave him a mischievous smile. "So that's why you're looking extra broody."

"That's not helping."

The pair continued on, cutting down any experiments that attacked them. The layout of the lab was similar to previous ones Richter had raided in the past, which he was thankful for. If they could make it to the control room, they might be able to use the surveillance equipment to pinpoint Emerald's location.

"This way." Richter said, taking the lead.

"Where are we headed?" Jaune asked.

"Control room."

"How in the world do you know your way around here? I can't tell if I'm coming or going anymore."

"Seen enough of these labs to know the general layout, there have been very few deviances in design."

"Oh."

The two continued in silence, the corridor they were walking through was free from any hostile experiments. Which meant they were getting closer to the more "Sensitive." Parts of the lab, a good sign. Maybe his luck would continue to hold and Emerald would be there.

"So..." Jaune suddenly spoke, drawing Richter from his thoughts, he glanced at the young Arc. "You and Ruby are friends right?"

Richter felt the steel that was his heart soften for a moment. "She is...special to me."

Jaune began subconsciously scratching the back of his head. "So why haven't you...you know...talked to her. She's been looking for you since you guys beat Darion Shiver."

Richter broke eye contact with the young Arc. There was a big reason why he had not reunited with Ruby. The dragon's power that dwelled within him was strong, strong enough for him to doubt whether he could safely be around people or not. There was no way he could see Ruby like this. If his control slipped, he could end up attacking her, hurting her. To do something like that would be unforgivable. He needed more time to get the dragon within under control and when he did, he promised himself he would see her again.

But instead of telling Jaune all of this he simply replied, "It's complicated."

Jaune frowned, "A lot of things are complicated, but the one simple fact remains. You two are special to each other. Whatever misgivings or doubts are second compared to that."

Richter wanted to believe him, he really did. But the burning desire to tear everything to pieces made him skeptical of the advice.

The duo eventually came to a pair of thick steel doors with a circular hole through them. The hole was large enough for Richter to duck under with minimal effort and for the taller Jaune to get under with significantly more effort. At one point Richter heard the sound of something hitting the metal hard, followed by a string of curses from Jaune. Richter shook his head, the young Arc had potential, but he still had a long ways to go in subtlety.

They stood in a circular room that was something straight out of a science fiction TV series. A ring of consoles took up most of the outer area space, with the largest flatscreen monitor placed at the opposite side of the room from them. Etched into the floor in the middle of the ring of consoles was the emblem of the White Fang, but it looked strange. Richter noticed that there appeared to be another emblem underneath, it looked like the White Fang was trying to cover it up. Probably Cinder's emblem, as the faunus terrorist group did do a hostile takeover on most of her stuff.

"Whoa this is the control room?" Jaune asked. Richter began making his way to the main console at the other end of the room.

"That's my guess, it looks similar to the other control rooms I've seen." He replied to the young huntsman. He reached the console and tapped the screen once, as he read the information on the screen he frowned. "Says a door to 'Basement 1' has been opened and closed as of one minute and six seconds ago."

Jaune looked around, "But uhhh I don't see any other doors, and the one we came in was still closed." He eyed the hole in the door they came in from. "Well…technically."

"Exactly. It has to be a door that is not so obvious to the naked eye."

"What like a secret door?"

"Yes."

Jaune walked up to the White Fang symbol at the center of the room, crouching down and running his hand over it. "Something seems off about this emblem on the floor."

"You noticed it too huh. Looks like they were trying to cover up Cinder's emblem."

"Maybe…but the floor feels uneven here, almost like it's a slit for a trapdoor."

"It's possible." Richter agreed, unsheathing Dyrnwyn. "Only one way to be sure."

Jaune quickly scrambled out of the way as Richter cut into the White Fang emblem with his sword. For a moment nothing happened and then several thick pieces of metal gave way, revealing a wide vertical shaft underneath.

Richter was impressed. "Good eye Jaune." The grey-cloaked demon leapt down the shaft, spending several full seconds in free fall before landing in a crouching position, the metal floor cracking underneath him from the impact. A dozen seconds later, Jaune joined him, stabbing his sword into the side of the shaft to slow his descent. When he dislodged the sword however, he lost his balance, tumbling through the air and landing unceremoniously on his head.

The young Arc groaned, "Why does everything have to be so friggin' high? Don't they know the average person is five and a half feet tall?"

Richter raised his unmasked eyebrow in amusement. "Wow, you have all the agility of a three-legged elephant."

Jaune quickly rose to his feet with an offended look. "Hey! Elephants can be agile!"

He snorted in response. "Yeah, if you're living in a child's fantasy world."

The young Arc dusted himself off. "Ruby failed to warn me about your snark."

"Every instinct in my body is telling me to rip you to pieces." Richter informed him. "Be lucky that snarky is all I am at the moment."

Jaune smirked at him. "You don't have to worry then, luck is one of my best qualities." He gave a thumbs up to Richter, who rolled his eyes and groaned in response.

A single corridor marked the only way to keep going and the duo took it. Light was scarce and so Richter conjured up a ball of grey fire in his left hand to help them see a little better in the darkness. After a minute of walking, they walked through another large set of double doors into a massive room, one that could easily contain the battle arena of the 80th Vytal Festival Tournament. However, what caught Richter's attention the most was the floor. It was all translucent, he stomped on it experimentally with enough force to shatter glass and when it held easily he realized what it was.

"This is cleersteel." The grey-cloaked demon said, surprise in his tone.

Jaune scratched his head. "Sorry wha?"

"A very durable material designed at Atlas." Richter quickly explained. "But that doesn't make sense. I read about cleersteel when I used to be a student at Signal. The only known materials were used in Atlas' science labs."

"So what's it doing here?"

"A good question." Richter answered, "And one I don't think we're going to like the answer to."

"You are correct Richter Bremen." Emerald's voice suddenly said. The room became bathed in light from an array of Dust lamps high above them. In the center of the massive room, typing away at a console, was Emerald Sustrai, she smirked at them. "Look below you."

The duo complied. Below the dark-skinned fugitive, past the cleersteel floor, was what appeared to be an altar made from stone. Lying on that altar was what looked like a young woman in her early twenties. The altar was surrounded by a pool of blood and several of what looked like veins snaked out from the corners of the room to attach to her body. The woman's skin was white as snow and she wore what looked like a black and red kimono robe with thigh-high black socks and brown sandals.

"What….what am I looking at?" Jaune breathed out.

Richter returned his gaze to Emerald. "Who is she?"

Emerald smiled maliciously. "Her name is Alice, she is the daughter of Salem, discovered six weeks ago by the White Fang."

"She's just…sleeping?" Jaune asked, still looking at the pale woman resting below.

"Indeed, forced into an eternal slumber by her own mother." Emerald answered.

The young Arc shook his head. "Why would anyone's mother do that?"

Emerald's smile showed teeth. "Because Alice is extremely dangerous."

Richter narrowed his eyes. "In what way?"

"She is….disaster personified."

"How ominous." He replied with contempt. "You seem to know a great deal about this Alice and her mother, Salem." Richter raised his sword, pointing it at Emerald. "How about you tell me everything you know."

The dark-skinned fugitive was not fazed. "You can ask Alice herself when I wake her up."

"What!?" Jaune exclaimed, "You're waking her up!?"

"Yup." Emerald replied simply. "The White Fang wanted to keep her under so they could put her under their control, but I'm going to throw a wrench in that plan." An excited gleam shown in her crimson eyes. "Now brace yourself, you're about to bear witness to a momentous event in Remnant's history!"

Richter snorted, "Like we'd let you do as you please." He was about to switch Dyrnwyn to revolver-form and open fire when he felt something hit his back, knocking him off of his feet. Whatever it was it was hot and he quickly turned his uncontrolled tumble into a roll. As he got to his feet, Richter noticed orange flames dissipating from his cloak, so that's what had hit him. A quick glance to his right told him that Jaune was down. The young Arc was lying on his belly, the same orange fire that was on his cloak was now dissipating from Jaune's back. His eyes were closed, probably unconscious, but at least the bandages were still holding.

"You're late." Emerald said at the new arrival. Richter turned back towards where he had been hit.

And froze.

Walking through the corridor that Jaune and himself traversed a short time ago, was Cinder Fall. Richter felt his blood boil at the sight of her. She still wore the same dress, the same shoes and the thing he hated most, she still had the same arrogant smirk on her face. At long last, he had found her.

"What can I say Emerald. The forest and mountains around Turthus are lovely this time of year." Cinder replied, she turned her attention to him. "It's been awhile Richter, you've acquired quite the reputation as a murderer."

"I've only killed those who wished to exploit the weak and defenseless." Richter snarled. "The ones like you."

"Don't be like that." Cinder mock-pouted. "Haven't you enjoyed the newfound power I've given you?"

"Enjoyed?" Richter said incredulously, his grip tightening on Dyrnwyn. "You think I enjoy being this monster I've become!? I'm barely even human!"

"Being human is overrated." Cinder said, her right eye glowing orange as she gathered her power. "I'd much rather be something more."

"Don't worry, you will be soon." Richter growled, taking a few running steps before leaping into the air. "YOU'LL BE A CORPSE AT MY FEET!"

With all the fury he could muster, Richter brought his sword down on Cinder Fall. However, his blade did not cut through flesh and bone, but was stopped, by a scimitar made from what looked like black glass. Cinder clenched the sword tightly in her right hand, the smirk still on her face.

"There will be a corpse here when this is all over." Cinder narrowed her eyes and somehow with the smirk still on her face, she looked more menacing. "But it won't be mine."

Richter responded by pouring more aura into his weapon, Cinder did the same and the clash of auras knocked the two away from each other. Richter backflipped and as soon as his boots touched the cleersteel floor he was charging forward again. Cinder rushed to meet him, now with a black glass scimitar in each hand. Richter felt a rush of anticipation running through his veins.

At last, the confrontation he had been waiting for.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: Going to be really busy this upcoming week, so I might not be able to get chapter 7 out by next sunday. Will do my best though!**

 **NEXT CHAPTER: Richter is forced to make a difficult choice, Revenge or saving Turthus. Jaune discovers the lab's most horrible secret.**


	24. An Arc's Journey 7

**A/N: Apologies for no chapter last week, there were several reasons.**

 **1) Was extremely busy R/L and couldn't find the time to really sit down and hash this chapter out.**

 **2) I needed to recharge my creative battery.**

 **3) I had to rewrite several scenes because I wasn't satisfied with them.**

 **The good news is I'm starting to get to the parts that made me write this story in the first place, so I'm excited!**

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Jaune awoke to the sounds of weapons firing, explosions, and the angry roars from Richter, whose distorted voice made it sound all the more threatening. Shaking the rest of the cobwebs out, the young Arc witnessed Richter and Cinder exchanging blows. Each time their weapons clashed, flashes of aura expelled from the points of impact. Through it all Cinder wore a cocky smirk on her face. Richter, in stark contrast, was rage personified. The grey-cloaked demon's orange eyes, which had seemed so distant when Jaune had fought him, were now blazing with life. It was as if Richter had woke up from some sort of daze.

Jaune tore his gaze away from the battle, looking to his left and spotting Emerald typing away furiously at the console. His memories, which had been foggy, suddenly became clear. He looked below, through the cleersteel floor. The pale form of Alice still lay sleeping below, the vein-like cables attached to her body were starting to glow with crimson light. The young Arc frowned, Emerald was making progress on awakening her.

"Richter!" Jaune shouted, turning back towards the battle being waged. "We have to stop Emerald from waking up Alice!"

He waited for a response, but received none. Ruby's friend was busy raining multiple blows down on Cinder, who was currently backpedaling from his assault. Richter struck out with a particularly fierce overhead slash at the arrogant woman's skull. Cinder crossed her swords in front of her face to absorb the blow, the impact from the strike bending her knees slightly.

"Are you listening to me?!" Jaune asked. "Emerald is about to wake up that scary-looking girl below us. We should really do something about it!" Still no verbal response. The young Arc growled as irritation began to set in, he had to have heard him that time, was he ignoring him on purpose? That bastard.

He watched as Cinder uncrossed her swords and in doing so, sent Richter sliding backwards on his feet. She closed the distance between them in a few running steps and swung the sword in her right hand at Richter's left flank. The grey-cloaked demon stabbed his sword into the cleersteel floor, shifting to his right. Cinder's sword ended up being stopped by Richter's blade. She tried to strike him with her remaining sword, but the grey-cloaked demon leapt above the slash. Balancing himself on the pommel of his sword with his left hand, Richter planted his right boot into Cinder's face. The arrogant fugitive was knocked backwards and Richter rushed after her.

Jaune was about to yell at him again when he heard laughter coming from behind him, Emerald's laughter. "You're wasting your breath Jaune. Richter's been holding a grudge against Cinder since before you started at Beacon. There's no way you're going to get him to stop now."

Realization dawned in Jaune's mind. Emerald was right, Cinder was the one responsible for turning Richter from up and coming huntsman to a monster. Ruby had confided in him Richter's tale. How Richter blamed the loss of his dreams and his humanity squarely on Cinder. There was no doubt that the amount of hatred he had for the scarlet-dressed fugitive was enormous. Jaune bit his lip, if he were Ruby, he might be able to get through to Richter, but he was not. He was going to have to solve this problem on his own.

Drawing Crocea Mors, Jaune charged at Emerald, coming at her left flank. He brought his sword down in a fierce vertical slash, one that would surely destroy the console and stop Alice's awakening process. Except his blade didn't tear into the mechanical innards of the console, but was stopped by the barrel of Emerald's pistol.

The dark-skinned fugitive sneered at him. "Nice try Jaunny boy," Her left foot shot out, nailing Jaune in the sternum. It took the brunt of the kick Emerald delivered, causing Jaune to stagger backwards. The young Arc fought through the pain to bring his shield up, he knew what his enemy's next move would be.

Sure enough, Emerald opened fire with her pistol. Instead of being ripped apart by Dust-propelled bullets, Jaune's shield deflected them away. Emerald kept up her barrage of shots, preventing him from getting closer.

The young Arc's blue eyes narrowed as he thought about his next course of action. He was out of melee range, so using his sword was out of the question. He could throw it, but he didn't trust himself to hit the broad side of a barn, much less a console. There was always his shield, but if he threw that, then his only protection from Emerald's bullets would be gone. If he remembered correctly, she had another pistol she could use, which meant she could fend him off indefinitely while she completed her work.

Still, there was one other option he had.

Enshrouding himself in his aura, Jaune sprang forwards, leading with his shield. If he couldn't destroy the console due to Emerald's interventions then all he had to do was knock her away from it. He neared his target, throwing his weight behind his shield. However, Emerald responded by gripping the edges of the console and performing a handstand. Jaune rammed empty air, losing his footing and stumbling forwards in a desperate attempt to keep his balance. He failed completely as Emerald shot him with her spare gun between his shoulder blades. The young Arc fell face-first into the cleersteel floor, sliding for a few meters before coming to a stop. A groan escaped from his lips, his aura had protected him from a fatal wound, but the impact still hurt like hell.

Recovering quickly, Jaune pushed off the floor and turned back around to face Emerald. He gripped Crocea Mors tightly in his right hand as he prepared to charge her again.

"Sure you want to do that?" Emerald suddenly spoke. "You keep this up and those bandages of yours will rip apart. Then nothing will stop you from bleeding out."

Jaune hesitated, the familiar pain of the dark-skinned fugitive's stab wound rippled through his body. He looked down at his bandaged abdomen, seeing a small stain of crimson where the wound was. As he watched, the bloodstain expanded slightly, not much, but enough to be noticeable. The young Arc frowned, he was a hairsbreadth away from a mortal wound and Emerald knew it. She was right, if he continued, his chances of survival declined significantly.

He looked helplessly back towards the battle between Richter and Cinder, which was now intensifying. Their auras so strong the shockwaves from their clashes felt like he was being slapped. Richter was the only one who could stop Emerald now, but he was too blinded by rage and hatred to see the bigger threat.

Jaune watched as Richter struck at Cinder's left flank with his sword, which the scarlet-clad fugitive blocked with the sword in her left hand. Cinder then aimed a horizontal slash at Richter's throat with her right hand. The grey-cloaked demon nimbly crouched under the slash and immediately continued with an elbow to her gut. Richter tried to follow through with a horizontal slash, but Cinder gracefully backflipped. The scarlet-clad fugitive's weapons shifted from swords to a bow during her flip. Nocking three arrows while still in the air, Cinder loosed them on Richter. The ex-huntsman was able to sidestep to his left and two of the arrows brushed past his right flank. The third one however, caught him on his right shoulder, sending him sailing backwards.

Jaune heard a snarl escape from Richter's throat as he ripped the arrow out of his shoulder. The grey-cloaked demon landed, his sword now shifted into a revolver. His glowing orange eyes glared maliciously at his opponent, who's arrogant smirk was back on her face.

"Must you hate me so?" Cinder asked in her sultry voice. "Look at how powerful you've become thanks to me."

"This power was forced upon me. It has twisted and turned me into something barely recognizable." Richter replied through clenched teeth. Jaune's jaw dropped as Richter's aura enshrouded him, above the grey-cloaked demon's head, a beast's head took shape. To the young Arc, the head looked like a dragon's head, like the ones he'd see in his comics. The force of its visible manifestation was strong enough to force Jaune to brace himself against it. "But if you insist, I will show you just how grateful I am." Richter declared.

To Jaune's surprise, Cinder didn't look the least bit intimidated, in fact her smirk lengthened and her lips parted to reveal her teeth. A high pitched whistling sound could be heard as Cinder made a series of swift complicated hand gestures. Her aura, orange like the flames of a campfire, manifested around her and the Dust woven onto her dress began to glow. Jaune brought his shield in front of him and braced himself, the two were about to hit each other with some big attacks and he wasn't sure the room would weather the clash.

It happened in a flash, Richter fired his revolver, the bullet becoming a sphere of grey flame that was large enough to engulf a truck. Cinder responded by extending both hands and firing out a cylinder-shaped blast of orange aura, it made contact with Richter's sphere and Jaune felt his teeth rattle from the collision. Parts of the cleersteel floor cracked as the young Arc felt himself driven back despite his best preparations. He'd never witnessed a battle this intense.

His eyes widened as realization came to him. He looked back towards Emerald, if a battle like this was awe-inspiring to him then…

Sure enough, Emerald's eyes were locked onto the display of power before them. She was so distracted that she was no longer typing on the console. Jaune rushed towards her, this was his chance!

Gripping Crocea Mors tightly in his hand, Jaune swung upwards in a diagonal arc, hitting Emerald solidly across her belly and chest. The dark-skinned fugitive's aura protected her from being cut, but the attack still knocked her away from the console. Moving quickly, Jaune reversed his grip on his sword pointing the sharp end at the console's display screen which currently had text on it saying Alice's awakening process was at ninety-nine percent.

Jaune buried Crocea Mors up to the hilt into the console. Sparks flew from the now-destroyed piece of equipment. The sound of something powering down reached his ears as he held his breath, did he make it in time?

He got his answer when the cleersteel floor to his right erupted. Jaune bounced his head off the ground as he was thrown down onto his left side. It was as if a giant invisible hand just struck him. Clear shards of the cleersteel were flung all over the place and the sudden eruption forced both Richter and Cinder to abandon their fight. Both combatants crouching down to maintain their balance.

As the stars danced out of his vision, Jaune took a quick look around to assess the situation. Emerald was just ahead of him, gritting her teeth as she attempted to rip out a shard of cleersteel that had embedded into her right leg. Almost the entire cleersteel floor in front of him was gone and floating above the newly made hole was Alice herself.

Her long ivory hair went all the way down to her ankles. Alice's slender form bobbed gently up and down in the air. Her eyes, black sclera with red pupils, looked to be in a daze. It reminded Jaune of how he looked when he first woke up and looked at himself in a mirror.

"Where…am I….?" Alice spoke. Jaune had expected her voice to be little more than a croak, being asleep for so long. But it wasn't, it was almost…pleasant to his ears.

"In an underground lab, west of Vale." Emerald answered her, finally getting the shard of cleersteel out of her leg.

"Who are you….?" Alice asked.

"I'm Emerald Sustrai, an associate of your mother's." Emerald answered, applying pressure to the wound in her leg.

Alice raised an eyebrow, "Associate? Mother has fallen low indeed if she's taking help from the likes of a human."

Jaune saw the dark-skinned fugitive fight to keep her composure. "I think you'll come to find that our resourcefulness is a valuable asset." Emerald said in an even tone.

Alice gave a small laugh and closed her eyes. "Indeed." The pale-skinned girl swept her gaze to the rest of the occupants in the room. Jaune felt a dreadful chill go down his spine as she made eye contact with him for a moment. The lust for blood in her eyes was so strong it was palpable. "And who are you three?"

"They seek to stop your mother's grand plan." Cinder said, speaking before Jaune could. The scarlet-clad fugitive was pointing an accusing finger at Richter, who was now focusing on something else finally. Jaune saw that Ruby's friend was also regarding Alice cautiously, trying to gauge her strength. "There's a village near here that is also collaborating with them. We should eliminate all of them at once."

The young Arc's azure eyes widened in shock. Cinder was trying to get Alice to destroy Turthus!

Alice placed a hand on her chin, looking thoughtful. "Mother's grand plan huh?" The pale girl chuckled. "She can be so vengeful when she wants to be." She spread her arms wide. "Very well, I can play the part of the good daughter for a little while." Her crimson eyes began to glow. "It feels like I've been asleep forever, let me stretch my legs a bit."

Jaune had no time to react as his entire vision became engulfed in crimson.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby cut down another ursa with Crescent Rose as she looked up from the furious battle she was fighting. Their search for Jaune had been cut short when they were ambushed by an usually large group of grimm. It was nothing they couldn't handle, but it was frustratingly time consuming. Jaune was out there all alone with no backup thanks to these bunch of stupid monsters.

Well not entirely alone.

She still remembered what Jaune had said through his scroll before they lost contact. Richter was with him. While she was glad she had finally found her old friend, she was also apprehensive. Which Richter Bremen was with Jaune? The lazy, but immensely courageous boy she knew at Signal? Or the one driven by hate and corrupted by Cinder. Ruby hoped it was the former, but she had a feeling it would be a mix of both. Whether she liked it or not, Richter had changed. Still, she wanted to see him again, no matter what.

"Their numbers appear to be dwindling finally." Ren said as he gunned down a pack of four creeps with his pistols.

"Let's finish these off quickly so we can keep looking for Jaune!" Nora said, slamming one beowulf into another with a mighty swing from her hammer.

Ruby leapt forward and performed a front-flip, extending Crescent Rose. As the petite girl completed her flip, the beowulf that was under her had its skull cleaved in half. Gravity began pulling her back to the ground and she slammed her scythe into the snow, planting it for half a second while she pulled the trigger on her sniper rifle. A blast of Dust shredded the remaining three bewulves that were charging towards her. Using the recoil from the shot, Ruby executed a backflip and landed smoothly on her feet.

"Everyone okay?" She asked her friends. She was about to put her weapon away when a pillar of red light suddenly erupted into the sky to the west of them. Ruby stared at it in awe, the pillar had to be as wide as a street and it was actually pretty close, maybe a kilometer away.

"That's one big boom." Nora said.

"Something's coming from the smoke." Ren reported.

A streak of red light broke off from the pillar, making a beeline straight for them. It moved impossibly fast and before Ruby could shout a warning to her friends the light was upon her. It stopped suddenly, just ahead and above the petite huntress. The abrupt halt produced a shockwave that forced Ruby to flinch away, crossing her forearms in front of her face in an "X" position in a reactionary attempt to protect herself. She felt her hair grow tingly as what sounded like electricity rushed past her sides. Then as quick as it came it was over.

"The waking world, it's been a long time since I've seen it." A gentle voice spoke. "Still filled with hunters too."

Slowly, Ruby uncrossed her arms and opened her eyes. Looking up to see a slender girl wearing a black and red kimono who looked to be in her twenties, her skin as pale as the snow Ruby was walking in. Her silver-white hair fell down to her ankles, the wind teasing it as she hovered in the sky. The girl's lips curled downward into a frown when she caught sight of her.

"I see the silver-eyed warriors refuse to go extinct as well." The girl said, her lip curling in disgust. "How unfortunate."

Ruby was shocked, this pale girl knew about the legend of the silver-eyed warriors? The one her uncle Qrow had told her about after Darion Shiver's defeat? But how?

"Who are you?" Ruby asked.

"I am Alice." The pale girl responded simply, her hands twisted and elongated, forming into sharp claws. Each finger was as long as the blade of a sword and was the color of blood. "And I am your enemy. That is all you need to know."

Instincts told Ruby she needed to move, now. "Scatter!" She shouted to Nora and Ren, leaping to her left and not a moment too soon. The ground they had been standing on a moment before had exploded and at the epicenter was Alice. Her claws were crackling with crimson electricity.

Ruby was about to counterattack when Alice suddenly lashed out with her right claw, creating a crescent-shaped wave of aura. The scythe-wielding huntress was forced to use her weapon to block the wave. Her teeth clenched together in a grimace, the range Alice had on her claws was deceptive, with these aura waves, it was a lot longer than she originally thought.

The force of the aura wave knocked Ruby away and she decided to use the momentum to get some distance from Alice. However, the petite huntress soon found she had a problem as Alice gave chase, flying towards her at an alarmingly fast speed. Ruby used her semblance, a red blur as she zipped from tree branch to tree branch, but Alice kept pace.

Changing tactics, Ruby shifted Crescent Rose into gun-form. She began peppering Alice with a barrage of shots, but the pale girl used some impressive aerial acrobatics to dodge them. Ruby even tried varying the timing of her shots, but Alice still avoided them, it was frustrating for the petite huntress.

A familiar grenade shell with a pink heart on its front zero'ed in on Alice's back, without looking, the pale girl swiped backwards with her left claw, slicing the shell in two. The two halves of the projectile sailed past Alice's flanks, exploding harmlessly away from her. Nora came flying in, riding on her hammer, Magnhild. As the Valkyrie got within range of Alice, she brought her hammer down in a fierce overhead swing, a trademark of hers that usually floored whatever enemy she hit it with.

Alice took the hit with the back of her right hand, protecting her head from the blow. The impact sent her rocketing downwards, but instead of landing on her head, she swiftly recovered and landed on her feet, cratering the ground upon her landing. Nora had just enough time to look surprised before Alice shot back upwards like a bullet, nailing the Valkyrie with a nasty uppercut with her right claw. Nora was sent flying backwards.

The sound of rapid firing filled Ruby's ears as she saw Ren on the ground below them, emptying his clips into Alice. The pale girl was smoothly deflecting the bullets with her claws, there was no look of tension on her face whatsoever and it kind of unnerved Ruby. To the cloaked huntress, Alice seemed almost...bored. Switching Crescent Rose back to scythe-form, the cloaked huntress monopoded her weapon and began firing rounds at Alice as well. Despite their double assault, the pale girl had yet to be struck by a bullet. Ruby's eyes detected small crimson electrical orbs beginning to form between Alice's fingers and grit her teeth, that didn't look good.

"Look out!" The cloaked huntress shouted. Hearing her warning, Ren leapt backwards, just a quarter of a second before Alice extended her left hand. The electric orbs between the pale girl's fingers spasmed, shooting out a beam of crimson lightning that exploded around the area Ren was just standing in. Although he had avoided the beam, Ren was still hit with the concussive force of the blast. The green-clad huntsman was sent pinballing between trees before finally landing face-first on the ground. He groaned and lay still, small red bolts of electricity coursing over his body.

Ruby was about to go help him when Alice pointed her right claw at her, or rather below her. The electric orbs between her fingers spasmed once more, but this time it formed a constant beam of aura. Alice made a cutting motion with her right hand and the beam sliced through the tree Ruby was currently occupying like it was butter. Unable to balance herself enough to leap away, Ruby began falling from the tree. Alice rushed forward, right claw reared back in preparation to strike.

"Time to die silver eyes." The pale girl said, a smirk on her face, she brought her right claw forward.

And Ruby's world exploded with pain.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Jaune awoke to the iron scent of blood filling his nostrils. A giant piece of cleersteel lay on top of him and he silently thanked the heavens that it was the flat end that had dropped on him and not the sharp end. Shoving the cleersteel off of him, the young Arc stood to his feet. Taking a look around, he realized that he had fallen into the pit where Alice had laid in slumber. The blood pooled around his calves, staining his jeans and some sort of fleshy substance covered the walls. It felt like he was in another world, dwelling in this pit.

"Still alive eh?" a distorted voice said.

Jaune turned back around in the direction he heard the voice from, on the other side of Alice's altar was Richter Bremen. The grimm-like mask that had covered a majority of his face now only covered his right eye and the right half of his forehead. Blood covered him from head to toe, most likely from this pit, and his medium-length hair was no longer spiked up. Now the dark brown locks draped just below his eyes. The skin on his face was a deep red and his glowing orange orbs for eyes were looking up into the room they had occupied before Alice blew everything up. A scowl was etched into his features.

"What...just happened?" Jaune asked hesitantly. One moment he was watching Richter and Cinder duking it out, then Alice broke through the cleersteel floor and then her aura just exploded out of her. Now he was covered in blood and his body hurt all over.

"That girl, Alice. She did this." Richter replied, his eyes narrowed. "She took us all out by just flexing her aura." The grey-cloaked demon's lips peeled back to reveal his teeth. "And to top it all off Cinder used this chance to escape! Damn that bitch!" Richter bent his legs and Jaune could see he was about to leap out of the pit.

"Wait!" Jaune pleaded, "We need a plan if we're going after Alice."

Richter stood back to his full height and raised his lefteyebrow at him. "Alice? I'm going after Cinder. This is my chance for vengeance."

"But Alice could be heading to Turthus!" Jaune exclaimed, "She'll kill all those people!"

"And who's fault is that?!" Richter snarled back. "Alice would not be a problem now if you had just let me deal with Emerald!"

"She tricked me!"

"And you fell for it! Now because of your actions things have escalated." Richter turned his full glare upon Jaune. "You created this mess. You can get yourself out of it. I've got plans of my own."

Richter prepared to leap up again, but Jaune had one more card to play. It was a dirty trick, but he couldn't let Ruby's friend just abandon the fight with Alice. From what he experienced from the "Daughter of Salem" so far, they were going to need all the help they could get. So he'd play dirty if it meant they'd survive.

The young Arc opened his mouth and the words. "Ruby is at that village." Spilled from his lips. It had the desired effect, Richter stopped in his tracks, this time his eyes betrayed his shock as they widened. "She's with my team at Turthus guarding a communications tower that is being built near there. If Alice is allowed to do what she wants, Ruby will be one of the victims."

Richter glared at him intensely. Now that Jaune was able to see his face, he could read his emotions better. Right now they were in turmoil, rage and love battled within the grey-cloaked demon's body like two heavyweight boxers. After a long few moments, Richter closed the distance between Jaune and himself, gracefully vaulting over Alice's altar without breaking stride. The grey-cloaked demon bunched up the cloth of Jaune's hoodie just below his neck and slammed him into the fleshy wall.

"This isn't my fight Jaune!" Richter roared in his face.

The young Arc however, returned Richter's glare. "If that's true then I've just wasted my breath and Ruby's spent half a year searching for a soulless monster." His words brought Richter to silence and so he continued. "Is that what you are now?" Jaune pressed, "Is that what you want to be?"

Jaune's vision doubled as Richter slammed him into the wall. "You think I like being like this!?" The grey-cloaked demon snarled, "You think I like…" He stopped himself suddenly, orange glowing eyes narrowing into slits. Slowly, ever so slowly, Richter's lips closed together, covering his teeth as he calmed down. "…For being so naïve, you can be quite the manipulator, Jaune Arc." With that, he dropped Jaune onto his butt and walked away, tattered grey cloak skimming across the pool of blood. "You win this time, I'll assist in defeating Alice, but don't think this is a trend that will continue."

Jaune smiled, he had done it. "Wouldn't dream of it."

Richter crouched down and then straightened his legs, leaping out of the pit and back into the cleersteel room. He paused just enough to land on a bent steel beam and then leapt through the rather large hole that Alice had made in the ceiling upon her exit.

Slowly, Jaune picked himself back up, that was one problem down, now he needed to figure out a way to get out of here. He scanned the room more thoroughly and noticed a light-pink domed membrane on the eastern part of the room. Upon touching it, the membrane twitched. The young Arc thought he heard someone's voice at the other end of the fleshy portal, it sounded like someone was groaning. Jaune pushed harder on the pink membrane and while it gave a little, it still prevented him from going through. Finally fed up with subtlety, He drew Crocea Mors and delivered a downwards vertical slash on the membrane. It split open immediately and Jaune was greeted with the sight of a circular fleshy corridor leading out of the pit. The sound of groaning was heard once more.

Steeling himself, Jaune stepped through the destroyed membrane and into the unknown.

 **VVVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: The stage is set for the final battles of the story, I'm ballparking it, but I think I will finish in three to four more chapters.**


	25. An Arc's Journey 8

**A/N: This whole chapter was written in 15-30 minute increments for the past like 10 days. It's finally here though, apologies for the wait.**

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby sailed backwards through the air as Alice landed another successful hit. The petite huntress could feel the wetness of her own blood running down her forehead. The battle had not been going well, Alice had taken their initial assault in stride and now they were on the defensive. The pale girl was relentless in her pursuit. Ruby found that she was the target of most attacks with a few aimed at Nora and Ren when they jumped in. They needed to regroup, but that wouldn't be possible until she got some breathing room. However, as Alice dove towards her with a malicious smile on her face, Ruby came to realize that she wasn't going to get it.

Alice came down on the cloaked huntress with a flurry of diagonal slashes with her claws and Ruby matched them with looping slashes with Crescent Rose. Sparks flew as the weapons clashed, the two combatants matching blow for blow. Alice suddenly twisted in a complete circle and extended her left leg, kicking Ruby in her abdomen. The impact knocked Ruby off of her feet and sent her backwards through the air.

Ruby growled, digging her scythe into the dirt to rapidly slow her backwards progress. Alice came upon her again just as the soles of her boots touched solid ground. Letting out a frustrated snort, Ruby shifted Crescent Rose into gun-form and fired at the ground. The shot sent her above Alice as she came in to try and impale the petite huntress. Shifting her weapon back into scythe-form, Ruby slashed downwards at the right side of Alice's throat, seeking to decapitate her. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Ruby watched the blade of her scythe make contact with Alice's pale neck, it dug into it a few centimeters, drawing blood….

Alice managed to lean away from the fatal swing, flying away from Ruby. The petite huntress noticed that this was the first time she forced Alice to retreat. It wasn't much, but it was some progress at least, baby steps.

"Almost got me." Alice said, "You silver-eyed warriors were always dangerous."

"Why are you attacking us?" Ruby asked, "We don't have any reason to fight you!"

"Because I detest you." Alice answered, firing a linear blast from her claws at Ruby.

The petite huntress tossed Crescent Rose in front of her, letting it completely leave her hands, it spun like a fan in front of her, taking Alice's blast.

Or it should have.

Unfortunately, Alice's blast was so strong it knocked Ruby's weapon away and still had enough punch to send her tumbling backwards through the snow. Trees and sky passed through Ruby's vision as she bounced several times off the ground before finally coming to a rest on her back.

A groan escaped Ruby's lips, her reflexive action to use her weapon as a makeshift shield might have saved her, but now she was weaponless. She had lost sight of Crescent Rose after she got hit and until she found it again, she wouldn't be much help in the fight. On the bright side, she had gained a little break, no matter how short it might be.

She watched Ren engage Alice in combat out of the corner of her eye. The pistol-wielding hunter came in at the pale girls' right flank and aimed a horizontal slash at her head with the blades on his weapon. Alice leaned back to avoid the blow and then performed a series of backwards somersaults to avoid Ren's continued attacks, dodging them all nimbly. After a few seconds of this, Ren suddenly bent over slightly and Nora suddenly appeared behind him. Taking a few running steps, the Valkyrie huntress used Ren's back as a stepping stone, boosting her jump.

"Got ya now!" Nora exclaimed, pointing her grenade launcher at Alice's feet and firing. The pale girl managed to leap up to avoid the initial explosion of pink Dust, but her proximity to the blast sent her upward to Nora. The Valkyrie huntress was waiting for Alice with her hammer, rearing back for a massive blow. A wide grin on her face.

But as Nora began to bring her hammer down on Alice's torso, she found her progress stymied. The culprit was none other than Alice's hair, which had come alive and wrapped around her arms and legs, trapping them. With the threat of being clobbered by Magnhild neutralized, Alice soared past Nora, using her ivory locks, she swung Nora around like a wrecking ball, tossing her down right on top of Ren's head. The impact from the blow cratered the ground underneath the two hunters and they did not rise again.

Ruby growled in frustration and continued to look for Crescent Rose, it had to be close by. Her search was cut short when Alice made a beeline for her again. The pale girl spun a part of her ivory locks into a needle-like shape, at the tip of the needle a ball of black-red aura formed. The needle suddenly darted forward and only Ruby's reflexes saved her as she leapt away to her right. What sounded like a bomb went off where the needle had landed, shooting up a cloud of dust and snow. Once it settled Ruby looked at the destruction Alice's attack had caused and blanched.

A section of the woods was completely obliterated. The cloaked huntress' silver eyes spotted splinters of wood hanging in the air, but that was it. That little ball in Alice's hair packed quite the wallop.

Ruby was forced to divert her attention back to Alice who had another needle extension heading towards her. The cloaked huntress used her semblance, dashing away from the second attack half a moment before it hit her. Alice gave chase, her speed matching hers. Ruby set her jaw in determination, putting everything she had into her semblance. The cloaked huntress' efforts bore fruit, as she began to gain distance from Alice. She was now a good two dozen meters away.

And then six needle extensions formed in the pale girl's hair and shot forward, all of them surrounding Ruby.

There was nothing the cloaked huntress could do, but open her mouth in shock, without Crescent Rose she couldn't defend herself from the black-red spheres of aura about to crush her. The spheres were only inches away, in another moment they would hit her and it would be over.

The sound of a blade whistling through the air filled Ruby's ears as Alice's hair extensions were suddenly severed. The spheres that were so close to Ruby she could have reached out and touched them were suddenly scattered in all directions away from her. Multiple booms sounded across the forest as they made contact with the ground.

Ruby felt a strong arm around her waist as she was suddenly whisked away. The trees were brown blurs as she was carried at high-speed through the forest. Finally, her rescuer came to a stop behind one of the pine trees, setting Ruby down gently. She caught sight of her rescuer's grey-bandaged hand, holding Crescent Rose.

"You dropped something." A familiar voice said to her and she froze. It was distorted, but she would know that voice anywhere. Ruby continued to look up to see a face she hadn't seen in half a year. It was different, his skin was a dark-red and a portion of his right face was covered in what looked like a broken grimm mask. His eyes even still glowed like miniature suns. But there was no mistaking the character beneath them.

"Hey." Richter Bremen greeted her with a small smile, it looked like he was struggling really hard to curl his lips upward.

"Richter…" Ruby breathed.

At long last, her search was over….

 **VVVVVVVVV**

Jaune braced himself against the fleshy walls of the circular corridor he was in. The wound in his gut was thankfully still bandaged, but Alice's explosive display had produced other injuries on his body. Moving his legs proved to be a bigger effort than anticipated.

He wasn't sure if this was an exit or not, but it beat staying in that pit full of blood. Jaune was fairly certain he'd never get the scent of blood out of his nostrils now. Why did the bad guys need a giant pit of blood anyway? Did they think it was edgy?

Jaune continued to limp along until finally, the corridor entered into another room. As the young Arc entered it, he found himself blinded by the light in the new room. Looking to the ceiling, he spotted a large disc-shaped lamp with several lights in it. The light revealed that this was another room filled with blood, the same fleshy walls that were a part of Alice's room were here as well.

The light also revealed that he was not alone.

At the other end of the room was a girl, a few years older than him it looked like. She was embedded by her arms and legs in what looked like a giant fleshy bulb. Several vein-like cables were attached to the bulb, similar to Alice's when she was asleep, except these ones were a dark blue in color. The girl's hair was dirty and matted, under normal circumstances it might have stood out as a lovely gold color, but it looked like she had been down here for a long time, weeks, months even. The blue dress she wore was torn and tattered, held together by just threads of fabric.

Jaune winced at the sight of her, the amount of suffering this poor girl must have endured must have been beyond imagining. The girl groaned, raising her drooping head slightly. Jaune took a slight step backwards, was she…looking at him? It was hard to tell with the curtain of dirty hair blocking her eyes from him.

"J-Jaune? Is that you?" An all too familiar voice croaked out.

The young Arc's eyes went wide as saucers as he took a closer look at the girl. He spotted the Arc family emblem on the left shoulder of the girl's blue dress and felt the color drain from his face.

"Jasmine…?" He asked tentatively.

 **VVVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby numbly reached up and took Crescent Rose from Richter's outstretched hand. Neither one of them spoke, and the silence was beginning to drag on. She wanted him to talk first, to explain his disappearance for all these months. To tell her why he didn't come to see after all this time. She deserved that much at least.

"It's...been a while." Richter finally spoke, breaking the long silence. Ruby scowled at him. Richter's orange glowing eyes went wide as she delivered a nasty knee to his gut. The blow took him completely by surprise and he doubled over, holding his stomach.

"That's what you say after half a year!?" Ruby shouted at him as he struggled to get air back into his lungs. "You go off on your own, after promising me you were coming back to Vale. You don't call or write or send any word telling me you're alive! And you make me search half the blasted continent to find you!"

"I know it's not nearly enough, but for what it's worth...I'm sorry." Richter replied, standing up straight again, a sorrowful look in his eyes. To his credit, Richter did not flinch from her scrutinizing gaze and Ruby knew him well enough to know that his apology was genuine. "After Darion's defeat, when the escape pod shot you to safety, I got a crazy idea in my head. The massive grimm that was awakening in the mountain, I tried to consume it."

Ruby's silver eyes went wide. "You tried to eat a massive grimm!?" Richter nodded slowly and the petite girl crossed her arms in front of her chest, glaring at him. "You're right that was a crazy idea, what were you thinking?"

"Well I didn't consume as much as absorb actually. It took a monumental effort of willpower and strength, at some point the strain caused me to black out and when I came to, I had turned into this." Richter said, pointing at his face. "The first thing I noticed after regaining consciousness was that the hunger was gone."

"That's good though right? That was your goal?" Ruby asked tentatively, judging from Richter's sullen look, she wasn't going to like the answer.

"It was, but the hunger was replaced…." Richter's hands curled into fists. "By an insatiable bloodlust. I'm constantly battling with the desire to kill…even now. The dragon that dwells within me is demanding your blood and it takes a very conscious effort to ignore it." With a visible effort, he relaxed. "I couldn't return to you like this. If I lost control and hurt you, I would never forgive myself…"

Ruby stopped him by caressing his left cheek with her right hand, despite the anger she held for him for disappearing, it was still good to see Richter again. She brought him in for a hug, wrapping her arms around his neck tightly. "You're strong Richter, you wouldn't have hurt me." She said softly into his ear.

"You don't understand Ruby, I…."

"I have faith you can beat this thing, and we can do it…together." She interrupted him. "So please, no more running off on your own or trying to be a martyr. From now on, you're going to take care of yourself."

"I don't know if I can…" He tried to protest.

"You will. Because you love me right?" Ruby replied, he stiffened when she said the 'L' word. She was reminded of the conclusion of their battle half a year ago, when she held him similar to this, and just like that time, Richter finally relaxed into her embrace, wrapping his arms around her tiny waist.

"Okay…I'll try..." He said to her. Ruby smiled in response, closing her eyes and savoring the moment. She had Richter back, one piece at a time, things were going back to normal.

"How touching." Alice suddenly said. Ruby and Richter immediately separated, grabbing their weapons and looking up to the sky ahead and above them where the pale girl was currently hovering. "You two almost bring a tear to my eye." She said mockingly.

"What's your deal?" Ruby asked. "What have we ever done to you?"

"You were born." Alice stated coldly, eyes flashing. "Man has proven time and time again that even their best, even their most altruistic, will give in to selfishness and betrayal. You are a stain upon Remnant and mother wishes to cleanse that stain!" As she spoke those last words, Alice bolted forward, glowing crimson orbs of electricity crackling between her fingers.

Ruby and Richter leapt in opposite directions, moments before a linear beam of aura sliced through the area they were just standing in. As before, Alice began making a beeline for her and the cloaked huntress prepared to defend herself with Crescent Rose. However, Richter came in like a comet, smashing into Alice's right side and sending her sailing through the air to her left.

Ruby watched in amazement as Alice smashed through several trees before landing on her feet in the snowy ground. She slid for few meters before killing her momentum. Richter was still coming in fast, his aura manifesting around his body as the head of a great dragon. Ruby watched as her childhood friend crashed into Alice like a meteor, the pale girl blocking his sword with her claws. The impact sent Alice sliding back half a dozen more meters, but surprisingly, she held her ground.

Richter's aura dissipated around him, revealing his surprised face. Alice grinned at him. "Not bad greycloak." The pale girl said before a needle-like extension from her hair crashed a black-red sphere of aura into his sternum. Richter was blown back the way he'd come, his limbs parallel to the ground as he rocketed backwards.

Ruby quickly took action, leaping into the air to try and intercept his trajectory. At that speed, crashing into the ground would be hazardous. Unfortunately, the cloaked huntress reacted without thinking and as she caught Richter from behind, the air left her lungs in a wheeze as gravity took them both to the snowy ground below. She and Richter were a tangle of limbs as they tumbled backwards a dozen meters, finally coming to a rest with Richter on top of her. He had his back to Ruby and her arms were wrapped tightly around his waist. She had managed to cushion Richter's fall somewhat, but never had success led to such soreness.

"Okay...she hits hard." Richter said, wincing.

"Yeah...she's...no joke." Ruby managed to say as she attempted to get air back into her lungs.

"Attacking her head-on is fruitless, we're going to need a plan if we want a chance to beat her." Richter said as he untangled himself from her.

Ruby smirked. "Well, as luck would have it, I have a plan."

Richter raised an eyebrow at her. "You have a plan? Now I know we're doomed."

"Oh so NOW you're making jokes again? Weren't you supposed to be busy brooding?"

It was Richter's turn to smirk. "What can I say, being with you is bringing it all back." His facial expression turned serious. "So what do you got?"

 **VVVVVVVVVVV**

Jaune couldn't believe it, his sister, Jasmine, was right before him, attached to a large fleshy bulb by her limbs. She had been missing for the better part of a year. Their father had sent out countless search teams to find her, but none had succeeded. Had she been in this creepy lab the entire time? Jaune found that thought unsettling.

Through sunken eyes Jasmine stared at him, tears beginning to form. "It….it really is you."

Jaune walked up and embraced his sister. "It's okay Jasmine, I'm here." The young Arc couldn't help but take note of how frail she felt in his arms. She was always so strong, but now he almost didn't recognize her. Jasmine's captors had turned her into a broken shell of her former self, and it was deeply unnerving. "We searched for you everywhere..."

"This lab was hidden well…." Jasmine replied.

"That doesn't matter anymore." Jaune said, offering a reassuring smile. "I'm going to get you out of here and we're going to go home, that's a promise." Jasmine grit her teeth and Jaune felt his right shoulder begin to get get soaked by her tears. "It's okay to cry." He said with a gentle smile. "I won't tell dad."

"I'm….not crying because of that….I'm crying because if you're here, then Alice must be awake…." Jasmine replied.

"How do you know that?" Jaune asked.

"I can feel it….She's awake and so many innocents are going to die because of her…." Jasmine said, continuing to cry. Jaune winced at his sister's display, she seemed so…broken. The horrors she must have endured….

"It's okay." He soothed. "My team. My friends will stop her."

"They will try." Alice replied. "But Alice is unlike anything they've faced before…."

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

"You ready?" Ruby asked.

Richter nodded. "Everything is set."

Ruby confidently smirked. "If this works, we'll win. I know it."

Richter raised his left eyebrow at her. "And if it doesn't? Got a plan B?"

He watched her rub the back of her head nervously. "Uh, would you be mad if I said I didn't?"

"Well, I wouldn't be surprised at the very least." He replied, rolling his eyes.

"Hey!" Ruby exclaimed indignantly. "My plans are successful most of the time!"

"Somehow." Richter's face turned serious. "Here she comes."

Sure enough, Alice was flying towards them, rapidly picking up speed. Richter tried to ease the tension he felt in his jaw and failed. This idea was crazy, it was preposterous and so undeniably Ruby. As much as Richter wanted to dismiss the girl's plan, he couldn't deny that it had a chance of succeeding. He shifted Dyrnwyn into revolver-form, pointing the gun at the ground. Besides, he couldn't think of a better plan at the moment, better a plan with some degree of success, however slight, then a plan that would be doomed from the start.

Instead of rushing to attack him, Alice changed direction, heading towards Ruby's retreating form. So, she had been right about Alice having a certain fixation on her. Good, He could use that to his advantage.

Firing at the ground with his revolver, Richter shot up a large chunk of the ground. It floated right up into Alice's path. He watched carefully as Alice prepared to slice the debris into tiny pieces. She noticed too late, the glyph he had placed on it.

An explosion ripped through the air and Richter moved himself into position for his next move. Alice fell from the sky, landing with her back to him. He raised Dyrnwyn, pointing at the back of her head and pulled the trigger. The pale girl's aura protected her from a fatal wound, but the close proximity of the shot did send her sliding forward through the snow on her face for a full second and a half before she managed to flip back to her feet, facing him.

"You'll have to do better than that greycloak!" Alice sneered.

Richter smiled.

Alice's face became illuminated as a glyph began glowing underneath her feet. Before she could react, it detonated, sending her high into the air. Richter ran underneath Alice, leaping onto a tree, he bent his knees as the soles of his boots made contact with the trunk. Straightening his legs, Richter shot into the air after her, positioning himself so that he was above and behind his target.

Shifting Dyrnwyn into sword-form, he gripped the weapon with both hands and raised it over his head. Channeling his aura into it, Richter brought Dyrnyn down in a swing that would cleave Alice in half. Except the pale girl reached up impossibly fast with her claws and blocked the attack.

Richter was going to follow through when Alice suddenly delivered a mule kick to his gut, doubling him over and knocking him back half a meter. The distance between the two was just enough for Alice to do a full rotation and execute a nasty elbow smash to Richter's left cheek. He hit the ground hard on his right shoulder, it felt like a bullhead had crashed into his face, but he couldn't afford to dwell on the pain. Flipping back to his feet, Richter wasn't surprised to see Alice in his face, the claws in her right hand reared back and ready to strike.

The former huntsman brought his sword up in the nick of time, blocking Alice's claws from reaching his eyes with the flat of his blade. However, her strength was so great that it sent him sliding backwards across the ground, shooting up snow everywhere. It was hard to believe that she was stronger than him, he had consumed a freaking dragon!

Pushing aside his outrage for the moment, Richter rolled back to his feet. The former huntsman deftly spinning Dyrnwyn in his right hand. This Alice girl had the upper hand in strength that was true, but how did she fare with close quarters combat?

She closed the distance between them and Richter struck like a cobra, gripping the handle of his sword tightly and performing an upwards diagonal swing. The attack swatted away Alice's right hand, leaving her open to the sidekick he delivered with his right leg into her gut. Richter kept rotating counter-clockwise, building momentum. He unleashed a backhand with his left fist as he completed a full rotation, intending to hit Alice on the left side of her face. Unfortunately, the pale girl leaned backwards just enough so that his fist passed harmlessly in front of her face. He was going to follow through when Alice did a quick backward somersault and buried her right foot under his chin.

Richter managed to stay on his feet, sliding backwards a few meters. He spotted Alice pointing her left claws at him and noticed the crimson orbs of electricity between the fingers. Instincts told him those orbs were bad news and he side-flipped to his left, two bolts of electricity passed through the space he had just occupied.

The former huntsman had barely touched down on the ground again when Alice nailed him in the sternum with a jump kick. This time his feet did leave the ground, his body parallel to the dirt and snow, sailing two meters above it. Despite the pain he was in, Richter couldn't help but growl in frustration. Alice was stronger than he was and beating him in physical combat, a girl who had been asleep for decades apparently! He wasn't ready to give up yet though.

Performing a series of rapid backflips, Richter steadily killed his backwards momentum, capping it off by landing on the side of a tree trunk and launching off of it. Channeling as much aura as he could into his sword, the former huntsman lashed out in an upwards swing at the advancing Alice, who was bringing her right claw forward in a downward slash that would have bisected him.

Sword met claws in a brilliant flash of light and then Richter was executing a complicated series of slashes and cuts. He sought to chop Alice into confetti, but the pale girl wasn't making it easy. So far she had blocked all of his attacks and to make it even more infuriating the damn girl still looked half-asleep.

Richter turned his rage into focus as he found another gear. With each clash of his weapon against his opponents' a shockwave was sent out, bending and creaking the trees in close proximity to them and sending snow flying all over the place. It made it look like they were battling in the middle of a snowstorm. Richter's blade was a web of steel as he attacked Alice numerous times with it.

And yet she was still deflecting it all.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Lie Ren did his best to brace himself against the barrage of shockwaves that were washing over him. He was just about to head to Alice's position to assist Ruby when the shockwaves started, now he was doing all he could to stay on his feet.

"Ren!" He heard Nora shout from behind him. Ren looked back to see that she too was doing all she could to keep from being blown over. He extended his right hand out to her and she took it with her own. "What is going on?"

"Don't know." Ren answered shortly. "Just don't let go!"

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Cinder watched as Alice and Richter traded blows from her perch atop the roof of one of the disguised buildings of the secret lab. She felt something similar to pride in Richter, having helped create him. He was holding his own, but he looked to be going all out, while Alice looked like she was still shaking out he cobwebs from being awakened.

The amber-eyed fugitive smirked. She had to admit, things were looking bad for a while, with her cover being blown in Vale and the White Fang withdrawing their support. But now, things were beginning to turn back in their favor. Alice would be the spearhead of their new plan.

Once again, they could set their plans into motion, and mankind would be torn down, brick by brick.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Richter took another step backwards as he parried furiously against Alice's assault. She had methodically turned the tables on him, putting him on the defensive. It was all he could do to keep up with her attacks.

Finally, one got through, a clean upwards diagonal slash across his chest from her left claw. Richter felt himself involuntarily flying backwards, watching helplessly as Alice dashed after him, a confident smirk on her face. He snarled at her, she had beaten him completely, in power, speed and technique. He wasn't used to someone being stronger than he was, it was quite the humbling experience.

Still, he was never counting on beating her in a direct fight in the first place. It was time for the moment of truth, to see if Ruby's plan would work. Alice had knocked him back right towards the area he needed to be.

"Now!" Richter shouted, the snow directly in front of him suddenly exploded and from that snow, Ruby's petite form leapt upward.

Crescent Rose in scythe-form, she trailed it just below her, timing it perfectly for the blade to rise up towards Alice's neck. The pale girl's smirk had disappeared and her lips had parted slightly in an expression of shock. Richter looked on in anticipation, time seemed to had slowed down to a crawl. Ruby's blade was a mere inch from Alice's throat, this was going to work!

"Go!" He shouted.

Ruby pulled the trigger of her weapon, the recoil shot boosted her upwards. Richter heard the sound of flesh ripping...

...And Alice's head flew from her shoulders.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: I wanted to end this chapter in a different way, but I ran out of time :(**

 **The next chapter is my main inspiration for this story. Unfortunately, I'll be busy this 4th of July weekend and I want to take my time with it to make sure I get it right. So it may be another two weeks for a chapter, too many things happening!**


	26. An Arc's Journey 9

**A/N: It's late! Apologies!**

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

It was very similar to how Ruby decapitated the Nevermore. Crescent Rose's blade sliced cleanly through Alice's neck as she fired a recoil shot that sent her rocketing into the sky. After performing an acrobatic back flip, Ruby landed in a kneeling position, her scythe resting on her shoulders. A moment later, Alice's head fell from her body and rolled into the snow. The body followed a moment later, collapsing into a heap.

Ruby immediately locked eyes with Richter, who was on his back, propped up by his elbows. The miniature suns that were his eyes betrayed his disbelief at what they had just done.

"We did it?" Ruby said.

A smile formed on Richter's lips. "We did it." He confirmed.

Elation filled Ruby's tiny body as she leaped high into the air. "WE DID IIIIIIIIT!" She shouted excitedly at the top of her lungs. It was at the peak of her jump that her body decided to remind her of all the hits she had endured from fighting all day. When Ruby came back down her face was contorted in pain. "My everything hurts."

"Yeah, this Alice was a tough one." Richter said, getting to his feet, "But she's dead now."

The sound of snow being crunched under someone's feet reached Ruby's ears. The red-cloaked huntress turned around to spot Ren and Nora running towards her.

"Ruby!" Ren called her name. "Are you alri..." He didn't finish as he suddenly scowled and drew his pistols. At first Ruby thought he was aiming them at her, but then she realized his aim was off by a few degrees to her right. She realized he was aiming at Richter. Ruby honestly couldn't blame him, Ren didn't know Richter and his appearance made him look like a demon.

"Another bad guy?" Nora inquired, holding her hammer with glee. "I'll break his legs!"

Before they could make a move, Ruby put herself in front of her childhood friend. "Wait!" She pleaded. "He's not a bad guy! This is Richter! He helped me beat Alice!"

Ren eyed Richter suspiciously, but he sheathed his weapons. "This is the friend you've been looking for? He looks..."

"...Like a monster?" Richter finished for him.

"Wellllllll we weren't going to say that." Nora chimed in. "But with that red skin and those glowing eyes and…" Her eyes narrowed as she examined him closer. "…Is that part of a grimm mask on your face?" Ren quickly elbowed her in the ribs, causing her to bolt upright. "Uh! I mean pleased to meet you Richter! I'm Nora and this is Ren. I hope I don't have to kill you with fire." Ren elbowed her again. "I mean let's become good friends, yeah that's what I meant."

Richter looked at Ruby then, raising an eyebrow. She could only laugh nervously and rub the back of her head. She knew what he was thinking, that her friends were weird. They were quite the motley crew indeed.

He returned his attention to Nora and Ren, "It's….good to meet you." He replied.

Ruby smiled, it was a start.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Jaune couldn't believe what he was hearing from his sister. She was talking like Ruby and his team were already dead. When did Jasmine lose any sense of hope?

"It doesn't matter what challenge they face, they'll overcome it." He reassured her.

Jasmine responded with a smile void of joy. "You're still too naïve brother." A sigh escaped her lips. "Then again, that is what I adore about you."

Jaune placed his hands on her shoulders, forcibly resisting the urge to cringe as he felt the bone underneath her skin. She had lost a lot of weight since he saw her last.

"Save your strength, don't talk." He gently told her. "We'll get a medivac here to get you out and then…."

A sound interrupted him, a most peculiar sound, given where he was at the moment. It almost sounded like….voices? But where were they coming from? Jaune took a quick look around him, but couldn't pinpoint the source of the voices.

And then he deciphered who the voices belonged to. Ren, Nora and Ruby and the young Arc instantly knew what was happening. His scroll was working again!

Quickly pulling the damaged device from his pocket, Jaune pulled it near his mouth and began to speak. "Uh, hello? Can you guys hear me?"

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

"Wow, you really did it." Ren said softly, staring at Alice's headless corpse.

Ruby grinned like an idiot seeing the impressed look on the flower boy. Killing a being as powerful as Alice was quite the feather in her cap. She watched as Nora poked the corpse with a stick a few times before Ren scowled at her and pulled her away.

"Now all we need to do is find Jaune." Ruby announced, Ren and Nora nodded in agreement. Nora slamming her right fist into her left palm for emphasis. Ruby was suddenly reminded of her sister, Yang.

"I can help with that." Richter spoke up, talking so suddenly that it caused Ren and Nora to jump, with his voice all distorted it didn't help matters. She saw him wince and she gave him a reassuring smile. She knew this was hard for him, and that was why she was going to be with him every step of the way as he reintegrated himself into society.

"You've seen Jaune?" Ren said, recovering from his surprise.

Richter turned his gaze to him. "He and I were in the hidden lab together."

"So he's okay then?" Nora asked.

"He's alive." Richter clarified. "Probably going to need medical attention though, he took a bad shot from a girl named Emerald."

Ruby instantly went on full alert when she heard that name. "Emerald's here?"

Richter nodded, a scowl on his face. "So was Cinder."

Ruby saw her childhood friend's eyes flash. She knew how badly Richter wanted to get revenge on Cinder. They had even been at odds at one point, so strong was his drive to kill her. For him to abandon his pursuit like that in order to come to her aid, it meant she had been right. Richter may have been put through hell by Cinder, but no matter what that amber-eyed witch had done to him. He was still HER Richter, nothing would change that.

"Was?" Ren inquired, snapping Ruby out of her thoughts. The red-cloaked huntress returned her attention to the conversation.

"They're probably long gone by now." Richter admitted. "Alice did some crazy aura explosion shortly after she awoke. It really did a number on Jaune and I." Richter's hands clenched into fists. "Cinder and Emerald were gone by the time the dust settled."

"Aw." Nora pouted. "I wanted to bash their skulls."

Richter smirked at her remark. "Same, but there's nothing I can do about it now." The smirk quickly turned into a frown. "Back to square one."

Ruby placed her left hand on Richter's right shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "It'll be different this time though." She told him. "This time, we'll find her together."

They locked eyes then. And Ruby could read her childhood friend as clear as day. There was uncertainty in those orange orbs of his. She knew he was still worried that he'd lose control, but Richter had always been the cautious type. Ruby was confident he could keep his killing urges under control. She wouldn't let him fall into a downward spiral.

 _"Uh, hello? Can you guys hear me?"_ A muffled voice spoke from Ren's pants pocket. Confused, the green-clad huntsman pulled out his scroll. His eyes widened in recognition.

"Jaune?" Ren said tentatively. Speaking the name of his team's leader drew everyone's attention.

 _"Ren, thank goodness, are you guys okay?"_

Nora moved to Ren's left side so she could get a better look at his scroll. "Us? What about you?" She asked him. "We've been trying to find you for hours!"

 _"Yeah sorry about that, kind of took a left turn and got lost and then there were these experiments trying to kill me and…"_ The young Arc could be heard taking a deep breath. _"I'll explain later, but right now I need to know, did you guys call for backup?"_

"We did." Ren verified.

 _"Alright. My sister is here and she is severely injured. She needs to be evac'ed as soon as the bullheads arrive."_

"Wait." Ruby chimed in, "Is this the same sister you told me went missing before you started at Beacon?"

 _"Same one. I finally found her…"_ There was a moment of silence after that before Jaune continued. _"Is Richter with you?"_

"He is." Ruby confirmed.

 _"Richter, can I count on you to point the bullhead towards my location?"_

Richter crossed his arms and leaned against a nearby tree, sighing deeply. "Yeah I'll do it."

 _"I take it since I'm talking to you all right now that Alice is defeated?"_

Nora's face lit up "Oh is she! Ruby sliced her head clean off!"

"After I played the decoy." Richter added.

 _"I see. Good work guys. Richter, I owe you one."_

"You bet your ass you do."

 _"I'll keep my word."_

"We should head back to Turthus and prepare for our backup to arrive." Ruby said. If Jaune's sister was in critical condition then they needed to do whatever they could to make the bullhead's arrival easier. That way it could reach Jaune faster.

"Agreed." Ren said.

"Yes!" Nora explained pumping her fist. "I can't wait to get back to town! I'm starving! I could eat a whole…."

A sickening thud was heard as a black-red sphere of aura slammed into the right side of Nora's face, interrupting her. The hammer-wielding huntress was sent hard into the ground, cratering it and scattering any trees near the point of impact. The sphere of aura that had hit her was attached to a very familiar length of ivory hair. Ruby felt the color drain from her face, no it couldn't be….

"Nora!" Ren shouted, rushing to his fallen teammate. Ruby and Richter immediately switched their gaze back to Alice's corpse.

And to their disbelief, found that it was moving.

Alice's head was clearly still separated from her body by a half-dozen meters, but the hair was alive, moving like snakes. The body itself was twitching uncontrollably. Before Ruby and Richter's disbelieving eyes, a trail of blood from the head made its way to the open neck of the body. As soon as the blood trail made contact with the neck it pulled Alice's head back onto her body. She rose to a crouching position, massaging her neck, the wound marking where Ruby decapitated her was still prominent, but there were stitches of flesh now holding the wound closed and keeping her head attached.

"….What the…" Ruby started.

"….Hell…!?" Richter finished.

"Yes….." Alice hissed, rising to her full height. "…There we go, nothing like a good decapitation to get the blood flowing."

Ruby dropped into a defensive stance, Richter following suit.

Alice grinned, the smile disturbingly wide. "Now that I'm finally awake, let's get this massacre started."

The sky darkened, in the span of moments day became night. It was as if the light was being leeched from the sky. Alice floated into the air until she was about level with the top of the tree line.

Then the blood began to flow from her throat and her eyes, a neverending flow of dark crimson liquid.

It quickly spread across the ground, forcing Ruby and Richter to leap up onto a nearby tree branch. The petite huntress began shaking one of her boots frantically, trying to get the dark blood off of them.

"Gross! Gross! Gross! Gross!" She exclaimed rapidly.

Richter's eyes narrowed as he stared at the pool of dark blood which was still spreading rapidly beneath them. "Something's not right, this doesn't have the scent of blood..."

"It's been awhile since I've been beheaded." Alice hissed, a sinister smirk on her face.

The pool of blood had now stretched to Ren and Nora's location. The ebony-haired huntsman didn't seem to care about the dark blood washing over him as he cradled an unconscious Nora in his arms. A bubble in the pool of blood began to expand to his right, easily reaching the size of a car.

"It's enough..." Alice started, continuing to smile. "...to get the blood boiling."

The bubble near Ren suddenly began to glow and instincts told Ruby that wasn't a good sign. "Ren!" She shouted. "Look out!"

Ruby was too late however, by the time Ren had noticed the large bubble next to him it was already exploding.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Jaune never knew he could feel such panic until he heard the distress in Ruby's voice as she called out Ren's name. There was a loud boom in his scroll and then...static.

"What's going on!?" He shouted into the scroll. "Guys? Can you hear me? What's happening!?"

"Decapitation is not enough for Alice." Jasmine said. "I told you, Alice is nothing like anything you or your friends have ever faced before." She coughed a few times and Jaune winced as blood trailed down the corner of her lips. "This isn't some grimm you can simply cut down. Alice doesn't play by the rules you're used to."

Jaune slammed his fist into the side of the wall in frustration. "Damn it! If I didn't have this wound I'd..."

"You'd get slaughtered." Jasmine interrupted, her voice weak, but stern. "Just like what Alice is doing to your friends now..."

"No!" He exclaimed in denial. "There's no way that would happen!"

"Jaune, you have to accept the fact that there are more powerful forces at work in Remnant than you realize." Jasmine said, her tired gaze turned melancholic. "If you don't, you won't survive long."

"So what? I'm supposed to stand here and do nothing while Alice kills my friends!?" Jaune shouted in frustration. The feeling of helplessness was the worst for the young Arc. It was tearing him apart from the inside.

"No…there is one thing you can do…" Jasmine informed him.

"What is it?" Jaune quickly asked. Jasmine had to have a plan, she was always so resourceful.

She looked him straight in the eye. "You have to kill me Jaune."

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby had to fight to keep her perch on the tree branch as the shockwave from the bubble's explosion ripped through the forest. She saw that Richter was having a similar problem, having stabbed Dyrnwyn into the trunk of his tree to keep himself anchored. She frantically searched the epicenter of the blast with her eyes, hoping for some sign that her friends were okay.

"Ren! Nora!" She shouted, but received no response.

The dust from the explosion finally settled and Ruby spotted Ren with Nora over his left shoulder. He was perched on the branch of a tree as well, his back to Ruby. Blood flowed from multiple wounds on the right side of his body, from his shoulder all the way to the upper part of his leg. His clothes in those areas were torn to shreds. Even with his back turned, Ruby could see the grimace of pain in the usually stoic Ren's features.

"Still alive huh?" Alice's voice sounded from behind, stirring the petite huntress from her thoughts. "I can fix that."

This time several bubbles appeared under the tree Ren was perched on. The stoic huntsman looked on helplessly as the bubbles grew in size, coming within several meters of Nora and himself.

"No!" Ruby shouted, activating her semblance, she flew towards her comrades as fast as she could. The petite huntress was dimly aware of Richter calling her name, but she chose to ignore it, she wouldn't let Alice kill Ren and Nora.

She tackled Ren just as the bubbles started glowing, narrowly staying ahead of the detonation that happened less than half a second later. Unfortunately, Ruby had not thought about where she was going to land and so the three hunters crashed haphazardly into the ground. The good news was that they were now outside of the giant blood pool Alice had created.

The bad news was that she was not sure how to deal with the pale girl.

As she untangled herself from Ren and Nora, Ruby heard the sound of someone landing in front of her. Looking up, she saw Richter's trademark tattered grey cloak as he stood protectively in front of them.

"You okay?" He asked, keeping his attention on Alice, who was taking her time floating towards them.

Ruby looked towards her friends. Ren had set Nora down on her back, his left hand supporting the back of her head. Nora's eyes were clenched tightly shut, and her lips were peeled back in a grimace, a large bruise beginning to form on the right side of her face. Ren thankfully seemed to have not suffered further injury, but his right side was still maimed, nothing had changed that.

"Compared to them my wounds are nothing."

"I can still fight…." Ren announced, though a hiss of pain from him said otherwise.

"You can barely move!" Ruby protested.

Ren turned to look at her, fire in his eyes. "I won't let this witch kill Nora!"

"Don't worry. You can all die together."

Alice's voice pulled everyone from the conversation at hand. She was now floating at the edge of her blood pool. Making a gesture with her right hand, something rose from the pool of blood. Something that to Ruby, looked like a giant deformed head. As the petite huntress watched it, the giant bloody head opened its mouth wide, exposing the ball of aura it had in its mouth.

A ball of aura that was currently aimed at them.

"Incoming!" She heard Richter say as he shifted Dyrnwyn into revolver-form. A grey sphere of aura growing at the tip of the barrel. She saw what he was going to do. Richter planned to divert as much of the bloody head's blast as he could with one of his own. A risky gamble, but they didn't exactly have many options at this point. "Brace yourselves!" He ordered.

Ruby's vision became engulfed in the collision of the two powerful aura blasts. Black-red against grey. She found herself picked up from the ground and tossed away, like a stray leaf in the wind.

 **VVVVVVVVVVV**

"If this is a joke Jasmine, then it's not funny." Jaune said to his sister, completely serious.

Jasmine frowned at him. "Do I look like I'm joking right now?"

"How is killing you going to stop Alice?"

"Because her heart beats within me."

An uncomfortable silence ensued. Jaune examined his sister more closely, finally noticing what looked like a human heart, but the color of sapphire. It was sticking out of her chest, just under her neck. Blue veins from the heart travelled up her throat and along the sides of her face. Each time the veins pulsed he noticed Jasmine wince in pain, though she was trying to hide it.

A feeling of dread nestled in the pit of Jaune's stomach. "What…what are you talking about?"

"Alice was put to sleep by stopping her heart." Jasmine explained. "Her body is incapable of making it beat again. However, the White Fang theorized that placing the heart into a living being would work…." She spat out some blood. "Unfortunately, Alice's heart was too strong for most people to handle." Her head sank. "And then the White Fang captured me, thanks to Emerald Sustrai….."

The feeling of dread grew within Jaune's stomach. "No…."

"They replaced my heart with hers and trapped me in this 'Thing.'" Jasmine continued, the heart in her chest pulsed and she screamed in agony.

"Jasmine!" Jaune called out, he wasn't sure what to do. The whole thing was a nightmare that was coming true.

Jasmine grit her teeth, taking a few deep breaths before speaking again. "So…so long as this heart beats within my chest, Alice will terrorize the kingdoms of Man." She locked eyes with Jaune again and he noticed how bloodshot her azure orbs were. "You can't let that happen Jaune. You have to stab me in the heart, you have to kill me!"

Jaune felt his world coming apart. "I…I can't…."

Jasmine scowled at him. "Do you understand what will happen!? Alice will kill your friends, destroy Vale and bring about an era of darkness and suffering the likes Man has never seen before! Countless innocent lives will be slaughtered!"

"How am I supposed to murder my own sister!?" He snapped, feeling the wetness of tears beginning to form in his eyes.

"The cost of one life to save hundreds of thousands." She replied. "Think about it little brother, the White Fang destroyed my heart, there's no going back for me." Jaune's heart began to break as he saw what little composure Jasmine had begin to crumble. "…I've been living in agony for so long…I…I want it to end Jaune. You'd be doing me a mercy."

"Why? Why does it have to be like this?" He whimpered.

"Do you remember what I told you about being a huntsman?" Jasmine asked him. "This is one of those tough decisions you have to make if you want to follow in the family's footsteps."

Jaune clenched his eyes shut in a vain attempt to keep the tears from flowing, it failed. "This…this isn't how it was supposed to be."

"Nothing ever works out the way we want it to Jaune." Jasmine informed him. "The life you chose is not filled just with glory, but also the ugliness of reality." She clenched her teeth to keep from crying out in pain before continuing. "There is a price to pay for being the heroes of Remnant. There is no victory without blood."

 **(A/N: I usually don't do this in the middle of a chapter, but for the full effect of the following scene, go to youtube and look up 'Dark Souls 3 Abyss Watchers OST' from the Dark Souls 3 Soundtrack. It was playing in my head the entire time I wrote this.)**

Jaune shook his head vehemently. He expected to wake up from this nightmare any minute now. But as he opened his eyes and still saw he was still in that hellish chamber filled with blood with his sister half-dead stuck to some fleshy monstrosity. He knew it wasn't a nightmare. This was happening, it was real, and he wanted to deny it with every fiber of his being.

"You know it has to be done." Jasmine told him.

The frustration, dread and helplessness all finally exploded out of Jaune as he fell to his knees and began pounding the ground with his fists. Blood splashed all over him, but he didn't care.

"Damn it all! How am I supposed to face our sisters after this!? How am I supposed to face dad!?"

"You'll tell them you made the choice any true huntsman would make." The ghost of a smile graced Jasmine's lips. "And if dad doesn't like that response, tell him I'll come back from the afterlife to kick his ass."

Jaune looked up at his sister then. "Jasmine…."

"It's time Jaune."

Jaune felt like his body weighed several tons as he slowly rose to his feet. Crocea Mors in a white-knuckled grip in his right hand. He pointed the end of it at the abomination of a heart sticking out of his sister's chest. The young Arc's face had set itself in grim determination.

"…I love you Jasmine….."

Jasmine smiled at him and for a moment Jaune saw a bit of her former self. "…I love you too…."

And then Crocea Mors was plunged into her heart.

Jasmine let out a small cry of pain, she collapsed onto his right shoulder. Jaune could feel the blood from her lips staining his clothes, or was that his own tears? He couldn't tell the difference anymore.

"You are strong Jaune…" She whispered into his ear. "…Use that strength…to deliver Vale from the coming darkness…."

She said no more then, as by then, Jasmine was gone.

His legs no longer able to support him, Jaune collapsed to his knees. The young Arc raised his head, staring brokenly at the ceiling. The hurt and pain of loss hit him like a tidal wave and he began sobbing like a baby.

Nothing, nothing would ever be the same anymore.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: Poor Jaune, this scene has been stuck in my head since I started the second story. It was good to get it typed out. Alternatively for that scene you could play the song that plays in Volume 3 When Adam cuts off Yang's arm/Cinder kills Amber.  
**

 **NEXT CHAPTER: The conclusion of the battle with Alice.**


	27. An Arc's Journey 10

**A/N: We're almost there! Just a few more chapters until the end.**

 **A big thank you to the people who have reviewed this, seeing people enjoy this story that started in my head is a great feeling.**

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Ruby felt the ringing in her ears and the pressure in her head finally begin to diminish as she struggled against the rubble piled onto her back. It looked like Richter's gamble paid off. They were still alive, but finding a way to stop Alice, that was going to be a problem.

She managed to prop the bottom of Crescent Rose on the ground beneath her. Pulling the trigger, Ruby shot the rest of the debris that was piled on top of her. It crumbled away and she was able to breathe in some sweet fresh air. Looking to her right, she spotted Richter throwing a boulder off of him with his left hand, the other was using Dyrnwyn to keep himself from falling over. Her childhood friend's clothes and skin were currently smoking which made sense as he had taken the worst of Alice's attack.

Looking to her left, Ruby saw Ren had dug himself out, despite the right side of his body being a bloody mess. Nora was still lying supine and unconscious. Although Ren was hovered over her, Ruby could see that the stoic hunter was keeping one eye on Alice's position.

"Just as I planned it." Richter said through a pained voice.

"I think I have a concussion…." Ruby mentioned.

"Well a concussion is better than being dead." Richter reasoned.

Ruby turned her attention to the stoic huntsman. "Ren? Are you okay?"

"I'll live." Ren stated simply. "So will Nora, but it would be wise not to get hit by something like that again."

Ruby nodded, "Agreed."

Movement in front of the petite huntress caught her eye and Ruby looked forward to see the something was rising from the blood pool Alice had formed.

"She's up to something." Richter said.

A deep frown was etched in Alice's features. "Still alive? This will not do. It's insulting to have trash like you still breathing. I must be rustier than I thought."

Ruby watched in horrified fascination as the things rising from the blood pool began to take shape. Arms, legs, skulls, all bone, it looked like skeletons drenched in blood. They were armed with swords, axes, spears and other various weapons and they were all pointed in their directions.

Alice's frown reversed into a smirk. "Oh well, this should fix things."

Richter blinked, "Did she...just make those skeletons out of blood?"

Ruby fought to keep the look of disgust off of her face and failed. "This Alice is getting grosser by the second." The petite huntress couldn't help but notice that the skeletons were leaving the blood pool to pursue them. She shifted Crescent Rose into gun-form, it could be useful information for the future, but right now they needed more immediate action. "That's fine though, nothing a few bullets won't solve!"

Ruby heard Richter shift Dyrnwyn into revolver-form and out of the corner of her eye she saw Ren raise the pistol in his good hand to take aim. The trio of hunters opened fire on the skeletons. Numerous bullets struck the group of skeletons, but surprisingly, the skeletons took a lot of shots before going down.

"That took a little longer than I thought it would." Ruby said.

Richter didn't respond right away, instead examining the dissolving bodies of the skeletons. "That's because they were using aura."

Ruby's head instantly snapped to his direction. "You're certain?" Her childhood friend's face set in determination.

"Positive." He replied.

"How in the world can skeletons use aura?" Ruby asked, confused. Aura was the manifestation of one's soul and last time she checked, skeletons were dead and thus, didn't have a soul.

Alice's laughter pierced through the petite huntress' thoughts. "Noticed my skeletons are pretty tough huh?" As she spoke, another group of skeletons began to emerge from her blood pool. "Reinforced from the aura of those I have slain."

Ruby's eyes widened as she absorbed Alice's words. Did Alice have the power to forcibly take someone's aura and use it for her own purposes? That was an alarming thought. There was no more time to dwell on the subject however as the new group of skeletons, all armed with bows, began to nock arrows.

Alice's smile showed teeth. "I'll add your auras as well, once I have ended your worthless lives."

The skeletons released their arrows, arcing them upwards. Ruby's first instinct was to grab Ren and Nora and leap away again, but as she turned towards them to carry out her plan, she hesitated. Neither one looked like they were in any condition to be moved, she might end up even hurting them even more. In that moment's hesitation, the petite huntress realized she had made a mistake. The volley of arrows had reached the peak of their height and were now descending down upon them. Ruby let out a curse, her window of opportunity had faded.

A flash of grey coalesced into Richter's form in front of her. Ruby watched as her childhood friend made a waving motion with his right hand and a wave of grey flame engulfed the volley of arrows, disintegrating them before they could reach their targets.

Ruby then noticed that the skeleton archers were wide open. None of them had arrows nocked for another volley. She smiled to herself, this was her chance!

Using her semblance, Ruby darted forward. A scarlet blur through the forest as she zipped by the group of skeletons, Crescent Rose flashing out in scythe-form. While half the skeletons had a makeshift aura to take her hits, they were still knocked a good distance away from her, putting them out of the fight, at least temporarily.

The other half were chopped to bony bits and Ruby saved the last one, using its back as a springboard to reach Alice, who was still floating in the sky. Ruby executed a diagonal slash, intending to open the pale girl up from left collarbone to right hip.

However, Alice simply extended her right hand and blocked the slash with a wall of blood.

Not done yet, Ruby spun counter-clockwise, completing a rotation and slashing at Alice's waist. This time, the pale girl pulled back her right hand and extended her left, blocking Ruby's second slash with yet another wall of blood. Gritting her teeth, Ruby performed an overhead slash, aiming for Alice's forehead. Once again her slash was met with a wall of blood, Alice had extended both of her hands this time.

The pale girl smirked at the petite huntress, their faces only a meter apart. "You'll have to do better than that silver eyes." Alice practically whispered, burying her foot into Ruby's stomach.

The silver-eyed huntress felt the air leave her lungs as she crashed back down to the ground spine-first. Even as she struggled to breathe again, she saw the bloody skeletons begin to surround her. Ruby's grip on Crescent Rose tightened, but she couldn't get her body to respond right, if she didn't get to her feet in the next few seconds...

The sound of a sword whistling through the air caught her attention and she looked up to see Richter cutting a path to her with Dyrnwyn. Although the skeletons had an aura to protect them, they didn't have the fighting skill to keep up with Richter, although they could possibly overwhelm them with numbers. Ruby watched as a skeleton wielding a sword and shield tried to bar Richter from reaching her. With a quick slash, Richter swatted away the skeleton's shield and then impaled him through the ribcage. He flicked the skeleton off of his blade behind him, not even looking back. Ruby smirked, her childhood friend would never admit it, but he liked to show off now and then. It was cute how he tried to hide it.

"So, maybe next time you let me know when you recklessly charge into an army of undead." Richter said dryly as approached her.

Ruby rose to her feet, finally starting to get some air back into her lungs. "I thought I had an opening, but I couldn't get through her defenses."

Richter winced in response. "Tell me about it." He looked up at Alice, a grim expression on his face. "As we are now, we can't beat her in a straight-up fight."

Ruby frowned as she kept an eye on the skeletons surrounding them, so far they were keeping their distance, but that could change at any second. "And I don't think she'll fall for the same trick twice." She added.

"We're in a bad way here." Richter admitted, "We should retreat."

She eyed the way Richter had come from, now crowded with skeletons. "Well, our way back to Ren and Nora is kind of crowded."

Richter smirked then, "Give it a moment."

Sure enough, several glyphs began lighting up under the bloody skeletons. A moment later, they detonated, sending the undead into the air.

Richter looked at her then, still smirking. "Shall we?"

Ruby mirrored his smirk. "Last one back buys dinner!" As soon as the words left her mouth, she activated her semblance and took to the skies, slicing up any mid-air skeletons that were in her way with Crescent Rose.

"Wait? What!?" She heard Richter shout out in confusion as his composure slipped, he leapt after her, repeating her action of slicing up the mid-air skeletons in his way with his weapon. The two raced through the compromised line of undead, leaving a trail of sliced up bones in their wake. It was a close race, but Ruby edged her childhood friend out thanks to her surprise and her semblance.

The pair landed near Ren and Nora in crouching positions. There was a moment of silence before Ruby looked at Richter, her eyes half-lidded and a cocky smirk on her lips.

"So…." She started.

Richter raised an eyebrow at her. "So….?"

"Where are you taking me to dinner?" Ruby asked slyly, she didn't think it was possible, but she thought she saw Richter's cheeks turn an even darker shade of red.

"Are we really discussing this now?" He asked, exasperated.

Ruby's smile widened, "Yes."

She watched Richter roll his eyes. "Some place that has strawberry shortcake..." He answered her.

"You know me so well." Ruby remarked.

"Unfortunately." Richter replied with a smile.

"Hey!" Ruby pouted, jutting out her lower lip. Despite outward appearances, inwardly she was glad to have this back-and-forth with Richter again. It was one of the things she sorely missed about him.

"As entertaining as this is..." Alice's voice interrupted them. Richter and Ruby returned their attention to the floating pale girl. "Even the best entertainment grows old if exposed to it too much." She raised her right hand. "It's time for you all to disappear."

The bloody skeletons began shaking, leaning backwards as if being pulled by an invisible force. One by one they were pulled to the center of the giant blood pool, slowly at first, but then the speed ratcheted up. Some skeletons were pulled so violently it ripped off their upper torsos, leaving behind the legs, which kept trying to walk forward. The bloody skeletons converged, melted and then reformed into three separate large deformed heads. Each one holding an aura ball within their open mouths.

"This is bad...!" Ruby heard Richter say, a deep scowl on his face.

He was not wrong. Richter had barely been able to hold off one blast from a single deformed head. Three was way too much. They could try to dodge, but that wasn't a guarantee for safety and Ren and Nora didn't have that option.

Ruby frowned, there was something she could do, but Uncle Qrow had been pretty clear on his instructions. The silver eyes power that she possessed could get them out of this mess, but it took its toll on her body. A massive toll, if her uncle was to be believed. The first time she had used it subconsciously and had defeated Darion Shiver with it, a man who had picked her team apart. Now she could do it at will, but in her current state, she would only be able to use it for a short duration. Just enough to protect Richter and her friends from the blast Alice was building up.

She was about to bring out the power within her when Alice suddenly doubled over, clutching her chest tightly. The three deformed heads in the blood pool abruptly lost their shape, melting back into the pool. Alice's eyes were wide with shock.

"It can't be…!" The pale girl spoke. "Someone…has destroyed my heart!?" She began coughing profusely, blood spilling from her lips.

"Something's wrong with her." Ruby stated

"Good." Richter responded, shifting Dyrnwyn into revolver-form and firing at Alice. Despite her weakened condition, the pale girl reached up and blocked the shots with her right hand. "Shit." He cursed, lowering his weapon.

"...Damn you, offspring of Man." Alice hissed between bloody teeth. "You may send me back to oblivion…"

She spread her arms wide then and Ruby was forced to brace herself as the wind around Richter and her picked up. To the petite huntress it almost felt like she was in a tornado. Ruby crossed her arms in front of her in order to protect her face from the buffeting winds. She cast a glance up at Alice and her jaw dropped at the sight that greeted her.

For her sight of the mountain range in the distance behind Alice was blocked, by a massive tidal wave of blackish-red blood, and it was pointed in their direction.

Alice's face was set in grim determination. "…But I will scar this land beyond repair before I go!" She declared.

"Oh man…." Richter said.

"No…." Ruby heard Ren speak with dreadful awe behind her.

The petite huntress looked on helplessly at the tidal wave of blood rising before her.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

 _Turthus Village_

A mother was currently cooking a pot of beef stew for her family. The father was in the living room, watching television. He was an averagely built man with black hair that was greying on the sides. His square-rimmed glasses reflected the light from the television so the mother couldn't see his eyes.

Meanwhile the son was out playing in the front yard. The toddler was riding around the yard with a Dust-powered tricycle, trying to make engine noises as he crisscrossed the yard. The mother paused in attending to the stew to smile at her son, he seemed to be enjoying himself quite well.

However, the boy's pleasant expression soon turned to surprise as he looked out west. He pointed a tiny finger in the direction he was looking, his mouth open in awe.

"Momma! Poppa!" He called, "Come outside!"

The two parents were out the front door in a heartbeat, responding to their son's call. They thought he was in some sort of danger, but as they neared him, they saw nothing in sight that intended him hard. Confused the parents finally looked to where their son was pointing.

And the color drained from their faces.

To the west of Turthus, instead of the usual mountain skyline they were used to seeing, was a massive wave of what looked like blackish-red blood. It was currently aimed at Turthus.

"A bunch of red water!" The son exclaimed excitedly. "Can we swim in it?"

"Heavens above have mercy..." The mother whispered, clutching her son tightly to her. The father looked on at the tidal wave, his lips pressed tightly together as he wore a solemn expression.

They were about to be wiped out.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Cinder Fall watched Alice form the massive tidal wave from the cliff she was occupying and grinned. First Turthus, then Vale, then the rest of the Kingdoms. One by one they were going to be torn down. The day she could look at Ozpin's arrogant face and cut him down seemed to be fast approaching.

"Beautiful…." She said as she continued to watch the soon to be over battle playing out below her.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

"If you have any plans Ruby, now would be the time to use them." Richter said to her, his voice grim.

"Just one." Ruby replied, she didn't even know if she would be strong enough to repel something like this, but there was no choice, it was either try or die.

Despite coughing up more blood, Alice had a maniacal grin on her face. "My only regret…is that I could not drench all of Remnant in blood! Now DIE!" She screamed, extending her right hand and the tidal wave of blood surged forward.

Her face set in determination, Ruby closed her eyes, searching deep within herself for the wellspring of power and drawing it out. It felt like a dam had burst inside her as she felt unfathomable power course through her entire body. So strong was it that it levitated her off the ground by half a dozen meters. When she reopened her eyes, she felt like a different person.

One who could take on anything.

Ruby heard Richter gasp on her right, but she couldn't pay more attention. The giant tidal wave of death took priority. Not quite sure what to do and acting out of instinct. Ruby extended her hands and channeled her power through them. The tidal wave reached them.

And abruptly parted before her.

"Ruby….holy shit…" She heard Richter breathe out. The tidal wave of blood had been deflected to each side of them. The wave was higher than the trees. For the moment she had saved them, but she felt Alice push more power into the tidal wave.

Inwardly surprised at how calm she was, Ruby drew on her silver eyes power and began to push back.

 **VVVVVVVVV**

 _Turthus Village._

"I'm scared!" The son screamed, the parents huddled over their child, intending to do whatever they could to shield him from their incoming doom. They knew it was futile, but they had to try.

"I know son!" The mother replied, "Just close your eyes it'll all be over soon…"

The parents watched helplessly as the massive tidal wave of what appeared to be blood surged forward towards their village. As they said their final prayers in their minds the most unexpected thing happened. The wave suddenly parted, and although it passed perilously close to the village, it did not touch a single building. The trees however, were washed away like they were toothpicks. The parents had no words for what they were seeing, it was as if they were witnessing a divine intervention of some sort.

"Wow." The son said, having opened his eyes to see that their village was spared, at least for the moment.

 **VVVVVVVVV**

Cinder frowned as she saw Alice's tidal wave get parted. What in the hell had the power to avert a disaster like that? She got her answer was she saw something glowing the color of pearls right where the wave was being parted. The dark-haired fugitive spotted what looked like wings constructed from glowing aura sprouting from Ruby Rose's eyes. The petite huntress currently had her hands extended and Cinder realized she was the one holding the tidal wave at bay. One little girl was going to ruin everything.

Her frown deepened. This would not do, this would not do at all.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Richter couldn't believe what he was seeing. A whole tidal wave, split in two, by just Ruby herself. Looking at her now, with the wings of aura sprouting from her glowing eyes, Ruby looked more like some sort of vengeful angel than a huntress, beautiful and terrible at the same time.

Finally, Alice's attack expired and the last of the tidal wave of blood flowed past the group. At first glance it looked like they were trapped on a wintry island, surrounded by a lake of blackish-red blood. It painted a real morose picture in Richter's head.

"Damn you!" Alice screamed, shaking Richter out of his thoughts he looked up into the sky to see the pale girl still levitating there, her left hand clutched tightly to her chest. "Blasted silver-eyed bitch!"

Ruby lowered her hands, which had been raised to repel the tidal wave and looked up at Alice. Richter noticed that she seemed to almost be in a daze. She shifted Crescent Rose into gun-form and out of the corner of his eye, Richter saw Alice brace for an attack…

Alice suddenly reeled forward as Ruby shot her in the back of the head with her weapon.

Richter blinked and looked at the spot where his childhood friend just was. Gone, she was there one second and the next she was behind Alice in the air.

Alice growled and spun around, swinging her right claw in a wide arc, but Ruby was already gone. She grunted as Ruby shot her in the left hip. Again, Alice took a swing at Ruby and again the petite huntress moved at impossible speed, this time shooting the pale girl at the base of her spine. Ruby then followed it up with two shots to Alice's belly, then three to the right leg, then four to the left shoulder.

Steadily Ruby increased her speed until she seemed to be everywhere around Alice at once. Richter did his best to keep up, but even he was struggling to keep track of where Ruby was with all the afterimages and red blurs. The sound of Crescent Rose firing didn't stop for a dozen full seconds until finally, Ruby landed in a crouching position right in front of him.

Alice's bullet-ridden body began falling head-first down to the ground. The pale girl's blood leaked from countless wounds all over her skin. Ruby twisted back around to face her falling enemy, shifting Crescent Rose back into scythe-form and digging the blade into the ground. She loaded the sniper rifle and channeled her pure-white aura into the weapon, her glowing eyes blazing with power.

"Disappear…" Richter heard Ruby say, her voice barely a whisper, and then she fired her weapon. It was unlike anything Richter had seen Crescent Rose fire before. A powerful beam that put a hole through Alice's torso big enough for him to stick a hand through easily. The beam knocked the pale girl far away from them. Richter watched in disbelief as the body disappeared back into the treeline, a tiny dot in the distance.

Alice's attempt to wipe them out had been thwarted. Richter shook his head, they should be dead right now, but one girl, one he had known since he was a little kid, had stopped her. The grey-cloaked demon looked at his childhood friend, her scarlet cloak billowing in the wind. Ruby's eyes were a shining white void as she continued to stare off in the direction that Alice's body had fallen. Richter's eyebrows furrowed as he delved into his thoughts. Just what was Ruby exactly?

"Ruby..." Richter started, but found he was unsure of what to say. She looked at him then, with those glowing eyes of hers and the grey-cloaked demon found himself wincing from her withering gaze. Simply looking into her eyes sent jolts of pain through his body and he clenched his teeth to keep from crying out. The grimm part of him was boiling within him.

The pain subsided mercifully and Richter admitted himself to let out a small sigh of relief. However, the relief was short-lived, as Ruby had closed her eyes.

She had also gone limp and was going to fall face-first into the ground, had Richter not rushed forward and caught her in his arms. He set her down gently on her back, cradling the back of her head with his right hand.

"Is she okay?" A voice said from behind him. Richter had almost forgot about the boy dressed in the green shirt and white pants. What was his name? Ren, that was it.

"She's passed out." Richter reported to Ren. "Using a power like that must have taken a lot out of her."

"She saved us all though." Ren said.

"That she did." Richter replied, looking on at Ruby with concern. This glowing eyes power of hers, it was amazing, but it was also dangerous. It could not be healthy passing out like this after each use.

"You're lucky to have someone like her." Ren suddenly said. "You know that right?"

"Yes, I do." Richter spoke softly, not looking towards the stoic hunter.

"Every waking day she searched for you." Ren informed him. "Even when everyone else considered you dead. She never stopped believing you were out there somewhere."

Guilt stabbed at Richter's heart, this whole time he had been concerned with losing control of his bloodlust and hurting Ruby, or worse. He had never thought about how she would be affected in his absence. He felt like the biggest jerk at the moment.

"I'm not sure I deserve someone like her." Richter admitted.

Ren fixed him with a stoic gaze. "To be frank Richter, I'm not sure either." The stoic hunter confessed. "But I trust Ruby's judgement and if she considers you as someone special to her." His gaze softened slightly. "Then I will abide by that choice."

Richter looked towards Ren at that point, nodding to the stoic hunter in thanks. It wasn't much, but it was still one step closer to acceptance. Perhaps with Ruby's help, he could make this work after all.

Movement suddenly caught the grey-cloaked demon's eye, something was coming, and coming fast. He reached out with his left hand and grabbed an arrow out of the air, intercepting it before it could lodge itself in Ruby's head. Richter took a moment to examine the arrow and realized it was made by a familiar obsidian.

There was no more time to dwell on it as more arrows came flying towards himself and the unconscious Ruby. Before he could make a move however, the arrows were shot out of the air. Richter looked ahead and to his left, where Ren was currently sitting with the heavily injured Nora. The stoic hunter was holding a smoking pistol in his left hand. Richter had to admit, he was impressed, Ren could shoot, that was for sure.

He was about to thank the stoic hunter when an arrow suddenly lodged itself into Ren's left shoulder, causing him to grunt in pain and drop his weapon. He collapsed onto his left side.

A figure landed in front of Richter, about a dozen meters away. A familiar figure wielding a bow, in a red dress, with dark hair, and amber eyes. Richter involuntarily growled, oh how he hated those damned amber eyes.

"Damn you Cinder." Richter snarled. "I would have figured you'd be long gone by now."

Cinder smirked in response, nocking an arrow. "I have some unfinished business here first."

Richter noticed her aim was off, she wasn't aiming at him. The grey-cloaked demon's eyebrows rose to the top of his forehead in realization.

"You're after Ruby." He stated.

"I can't let someone like her continue to live." Cinder confirmed. "She will be a detriment to our plans."

"Detriment? You mean she has the power to stop them outright." Richter replied, he set Ruby down, making sure to keep his body between her and Cinder. Standing back up again, the grey-cloaked demon drew Dyrnwyn, gripping the blade tightly in his right hand as he stood to his full height.

"It doesn't have to be this way you know." Cinder said. "Walk away now and you'll be spared from our wrath."

Richter responded with a harsh laugh. "You must think I'm a complete idiot if you think I'll let you lay a finger on Ruby."

"No, but you are pragmatic, at least you were the last time I checked." The dark-haired fugitive's amber eyes narrowed. "You felt it didn't you? That searing agonizing pain when she used her new power." Her smirk grew slightly wider. "If you continue to associate yourself with Ruby Rose, her power will kill you."

"Even if that's true, I'd rather die by her side than live knowing she was killed by a failure like you."

Cinder's smirk vanished completely. "Excuse me?"

It was Richter's turn to smirk. "Surely with all your intellect you've realized it by now." He said mockingly. "You failed to make me your weapon, you failed to infiltrate Beacon successfully and now you've failed to use Alice in whatever plans you were scheming." His eyes narrowed and his smirk lengthened. "It must be hard for you to accept being such a failure."

Fire manifested in the dark-haired fugitive's eyes as she glared daggers at him. Richter glared right back, unintimidated by her display. Finally, there were no more interruptions, no more threats to innocents. This time there was nothing else to get in his way.

This time, he would kill Cinder Fall.

 **VVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: The stakes are high for this upcoming battle. Can Richter prevent Cinder from killing Ruby? Or will She succeed and eliminate the biggest chance the four kingdoms has to stopping their master plan? Find out next chapter!**


	28. An Arc's Journey 11

**A/N: Free time has been short, so sorry for the longer delay.**

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Qrow Branwen never was good with rules or guidelines. He preferred doing things his own way on his own time. It's why General Ironwood and him always butted heads, why he always had issues with his teachers at the academy in his younger days. Fortunately, Ozpin saw where his talents lie and after his team disbanded, he began his recon work for the seemingly ageless man. As a scout trying to sniff out the next threats to the four kingdoms, he was able to operate on his own, with no one to tell him what he could and couldn't do.

So it came as a surprise to the older huntsman when he found himself trying to chastise the current wielder of the Fall Maiden's power, well, part of it anyway. He would have drank to the irony, but his flask had went empty a day ago and he hadn't had the chance to refill it.

"We're taking a big risk here kid." Qrow said as he looked around the decadent halls of the White Fang's hidden lab, located near Turthus. Various dead bodies of human and faunus who were unfortunate enough to be experimented on, littered the floors. Blood was everywhere, some of it fresh from the hostile experiments they were forced to slay.

The girl he was talking to was young, most likely she would have been a second-year student at Beacon had she not been chosen to inherit the Fall Maiden's power. Her Scarlet hair flowed down to her waist in a ponytail, and she was garbed in gladiator-like armor. In the girl's hands were a crimson-colored shortsword and a small round golden shield that covered her left forearm. She turned to glance at Qrow with jade-colored eyes, a somber expression on her face. This was Pyrrha Nikos, the best huntress of her class, the reason she was chosen to be the next Fall Maiden.

"I know." She said simply before continuing to walk down the dark hallway they were occupying.

Qrow's frown deepened. "You know this wasn't part of our mission." It felt really weird saying that, he really was getting old. His younger self would be laughing at him. "Ozpin might get pretty pissed at us for deviating."

"I don't care." Came Pyrrha's reply. "Was your intel correct about this particular lab?"

Qrow let out a long sigh. "Yeah, this was his sister's last known location."

Pyrrha didn't slow her stride down. "Then this is where I need to be."

Qrow wanted to say more as Pyrrha vanished further into the lab, but couldn't find the words. This Pyrrha Nikos was very stubborn when it came to her teammate, Jaune Arc. Qrow couldn't see why, Jaune after all was the complete opposite to her in terms of Huntsman skill. He was only now beginning to catch up thanks to Ozpin's training. In fact, the only reason Pyrrha agreed to become the Fall Maiden at all was if Ozpin agreed to train Jaune. So that he would have the skills he needed to protect himself.

The older huntsman found himself reminded of his sister with Pyrrha. Raven had a strong sense of right and wrong just like Ms. Nikos. However, that sense could skewer one's perspective and in his sister's case, it skewered it immensely.

Qrow sighed again as he followed Pyrrha, he really needed a drink now.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Richter took a deep breath and saw that Cinder was doing the same. Unlike Alice, his strength was comparable to the amber-eyed fugitive, but that didn't make her any less of a threat. He couldn't let his hatred for her blind him. If he lost here, Ruby would be dead.

The grey-cloaked demon took another breath, calm, he needed to be calm.

And then he shifted Dyrnwyn into revolver-form and fired a blast that was larger than his small frame. Cinder had the same idea in mind as well, and grey aura met fiery orange as the two blasts collided.

Richter's world exploded around him, the shockwave from the clashing blasts forcing him to plant his feet. He needed to move the fight away from Ruby, in her current state a stray blast or shot could kill her. It was time to throw caution to the wind.

The two aura blasts stalemated and exploded. Richter charged recklessly through the explosion at top speed, hoping to minimize damage to his body by rushing through. He felt an invisible fist smack him as he passed through the clashing energies which threatened to throw him off course. Richter held his path, whether through sheer stubbornness or constitution he wasn't sure.

He burst through the explosion at breakneck speed, palming Cinder's shocked face with his left hand. He dragged her along for a few seconds before tossing her forward as hard as he could, easily throwing her over a hundred yards. The grey-cloaked demon heard the sound of her body making contact with several tree trunks on her way down and followed the noise. He had taken the fight away from Ruby, now he just needed to finish her off. Smoke rolled off his form in thick billows and every part of his body felt like it was burning, but he shrugged it off.

Richter bolted forward, closing the distance between himself and the amber-eyed fugitive just as she was digging herself out of the pile of debris that had fallen on top of her during her rough landing. Shifting Dyrnwyn into sword-form, Richter performed a diagonal downward slash aimed at Cinder's throat. However, the amber-eyed fugitive managed to lean to her left just in time, and the tip of Dyrnwyn's blade sliced across her right cheek, causing a slight eruption of blood to dripping forth from the wound.

He followed through with a horizontal slash aimed at her waist, but the Cinder was too nimble, leaping straight up to avoid the attack. Richter shifted his weapon into gun-form and used a recoil shot to leap up after her, matching her altitude. He aimed his revolver almost point-blank at Cinder's face and pulled the trigger. Unfortunately, she was able to bat his weapon away at the last possible moment with a conjured obsidian sword in her left hand. Undaunted, Richter used the momentum to twist clockwise, building momentum. As he was twisting, he shifted Dyrnwyn back to sword form and lashed out at his opponent's head as he completed a full rotation. Cinder blocked it with both her conjured swords, barely stopping an attack that would have cut the top part of her head off from above the eyebrows.

The two combatants hung in the air for a full second, scowling at each other. Richter tried to break away first, but Cinder performed a backflip, planting the tip of her right shoe under his chin in the process. The grey-cloaked demon was knocked down and away from her. As he began falling back towards the ground, he felt something sharp dig into his left shoulder, accelerating his progress.

Richter crashed hard into the snow and dirt on his spine, bouncing a meter off the ground when he impacted. A cry of pain escaped his lips, which was quickly followed by a snarl of anger as he rolled backwards onto his feet. He spotted the obsidian arrow lodged into his left shoulder and roughly ripped it out, clenching his teeth to keep from crying out in pain again.

Cinder landed as well, much more gently than he did, and swiftly nocked three more arrows and loosed them. Dyrnwyn was a blur in Richter's hands and he sliced all three projectiles into pieces. The amber-eyed fugitive then changed her bow into her dual obsidian blades and charged him. Richter waited for her with a quiet glare on his face, his sword lowered, but in a white-knuckled grip in his right hand.

Cinder lunged forward with both swords, crossing them at Richter's neck, trying to behead him just like he did to her a few moments ago. The grey-cloaked demon took a step back, leaning away from Cinder's blades as much as possible, they whiffed just a few centimeters in front of his throat. The amber-eyed fugitive followed through, uncrossing her swords at his torso, seeking to slice him in half. Richter performed a fast front-flip and Cinder's blades sliced harmlessly through the air underneath him. He then extended his right foot during his flip and buried the heel into the back of her skull, causing her to eat the ground in a very brutal fashion. Richter's attack landed with such force that Cinder cratered the ground underneath her.

Seeing an opportunity to finish his opponent off, Richter shifted his weapon into revolver form and fired at Cinder's prone form. Amazingly, she was able to dodge the shot by pushing off the ground, throwing herself into the air. Richter noted that she was rising up to his position in mid-air at a rapid rate. He went to take aim with his revolver again when Cinder suddenly let loose with a burst of speed. She gripped his right ankle with her right hand and Richter heard her let out a roar of rage as she threw him into the ground with all of her might.

Once again, Richter found himself hitting the ground, this time his shoulder blades took the brunt of the impact. He felt the ground give way beneath him slightly as it cratered. There was no time to dwell on how sore he was though, as Cinder dropped from the sky, obsidian blades gleaming in the setting sun. She reared her right hand back and Richter saw she intended to bury the blade into his forehead. He tried to bring his left forearm up to try and block it, but he didn't know if it would make it in time.

Cinder's blade pierced flesh, and the combatants found themselves splattered with blood.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Pyrrha was staring at a pair of thick steel doors, a hole was pierced through the center of them, large enough for a person to crouch through. According to Qrow Branwen, behind those doors was the control room, and Jaune. She was about to duck through the hole in the doors when a hand on her right shoulder stopped her. Looking behind her she saw Qrow with a serious expression on his face.

"Before we go in there, I just want to warn you that you might not like what you see. There are things out there that make the normal grimm seem like teddy bears." The older huntsman stated.

"That's fine. I suspected there would be ordeals like this when I agreed to become the fall maiden." Pyrrha replied. "But if Jaune is here with his sister…"

"His sister is probably dead." Qrow said bluntly.

Pyrrha's eyebrows furrowed slightly. "You don't know that."

"I've seen enough of these scenarios to know how it ends." He replied, his face softening. "It doesn't end well."

"If that's true, then Jaune needs me now more than ever." Pyrrha responded shrugging off his shoulder and crouching so she could get through the hole in the double doors. Maybe it was because she only recently became the Fall Maiden, but she just couldn't stand to leave her old team behind when they were in trouble. How did the previous maidens ever sever their bonds with friends like that? The scarlet-haired huntress couldn't fathom the answer as she continued deeper into the lab.

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

Richter felt the wetness of his own blood on his face as Cinder's sword pierced his left forearm, even with his arm taking most of the hit, the tip of blade was still just inches from his face. Cinder herself still had an expression of calm about her, but Richter could see the wild angry look in her amber eyes, her composure was slipping.

He tried to rear Dyrnwyn back enough so he could properly run the amber-eyed bitch through with the blade, but she had him pinned down in a position that wouldn't allow him to fully extend his arm. Pain flared through his left forearm as Cinder pushed it through another centimeter, another few and she'd pierce his left eyeball. He had to do something.

Thinking quickly, Richter shifted his weapon into revolver-form, now more compact, he was able to jab the barrel into Cinder's abdomen. He didn't waste another second as he fired, tearing a small hole through her gut. More blood splattered him as the force of the shot knocked the amber-eyed fugitive off of him, she landed in a supine position a dozen meters in front of him.

Richter winced as he fought to a crouching position, his left arm bleeding heavily. Thankfully, Cinder's blade was extracted from his arm when he shot her, still hurt like hell though. The grey-cloaked demon's orange glowing eyes surveyed his opponent, who was also struggling to get to a sitting position. The tight control on his killer urges was becoming undone, getting wounded wasn't helping matters either. If he didn't end this fight soon, he might not be able to rein himself in.

"You're a fool Richter…" Cinder spoke, breathing heavily, her left hand covering the gunshot wound in her abdomen. "…You and every single huntsman out there, you're all blind fools. You think you're making the world safer? All you're doing is giving mankind false hope."

"Four kingdoms that have lasted for centuries…" Richter shot back, breathing just as hard as she was. "…Seems like some pretty real hope to me…."

"If you really think the four kingdoms is a testament to the power of mankind's hope, then you are more naïve than I thought you were." Cinder's eyes narrowed, "Your damned kingdoms were built on lies and betrayal!"

"And why the hell should I believe you?" Richter asked skeptically.

Cinder's familiar smirk returned to her lips briefly. "It will be better for you to see it for yourself when the time comes." Her eyes narrowed. "Just know that Ozpin's arrogance will be your downfall."

Richter grinned ferally. "I think you're just salty because you're losing."

The amber-eyed fugitive frowned in response. "There have been setbacks, but at least I have a place to return to." She leveled an intense gaze at him. "What about you? I'm pretty sure Vale won't accept a little circus freak."

Her mocking tone incensed him. "Shut the hell up!" He shouted as he charged at her. Cinder mirrored his action and the two met halfway, blades clashing against each other, creating powerful shockwaves that whipped the snow into white dust and bent the nearby trees. The exchanges of attacks were different than before, they were more fierce, more savage. They looked less like two skilled combatants and more like two angry monsters trying to kill each other.

 **VVVVVVVVVVV**

Pyrrha felt like she was walking through hell. Blood pooled up to the Fall Maiden's calves in the secret room that lied beneath the control room. Fleshy growths littered the normally grey steel structures and the stench of iron filled her nostrils. Currently, Qrow and herself were traveling through a narrow corridor that was also covered with the fleshy growths. Pyrrha half-expected something to rip out of the growths to attack them, but it didn't happen.

After a bit of walking, the Fall Maiden stepped into another room, one that would have been right at home in her nightmares.

Kneeling in a pool of blood, with his dead sister still resting on his shoulder, was Jaune. He was covered in Jasmine's lifeblood, staring aimlessly at the ceiling. Pyrrha's heart skipped at the sight of him, she had never seen him look so broken.

Without hesitation, Pyrrha rushed to Jaune's side. As gently as she could, she lifted Jasmine's lifeless body from him, setting it aside. She then gripped the young Arc tightly by the shoulders.

"Jaune…" She spoke his name softly. His glazed blue eyes refocused, looking right into her jade-colored orbs.

"Pyrrha…" He croaked, upon closer inspection, Pyrrha saw the tear streaks running down Jaune's cheeks. They were difficult to notice with all of the blood on him. "Did I….stop Alice….?"

"Damn it!" Qrow cursed from the room's exit. "We were too late, the White Fang managed to revive her after all."

"Who is Alice?" Pyrrha demanded, looking at Qrow.

"….She was too strong…" Jaune responded, drawing Pyrrha's attention back to him. "….They….they put Alice's heart into my sister….She told me the only way to stop Alice was to destroy her heart…..and so I…." He didn't finish, weakly shaking his head.

Her heart aching for him, Pyrrha pulled him into an embrace, holding him tight. She was dimly aware of Qrow furiously typing away on his scroll, most likely informing Ozpin about this Alice person. Right now she didn't care about that. The only thing that mattered at that moment was Jaune and anything she could do to ease his pain.

"….Did I….save people…?" Jaune weakly asked her, "….Did I….save our friends….?"

Pyrrha hugged him tighter. "You saved them all Jaune, you're a hero." She spoke without hesitation.

"…So why does it hurt so bad…?" He asked her.

She didn't have an answer for that question.

 **VVVVVVVVVVV**

Richter snarled as he continued slashing away at Cinder, who was doing the same to him. They had been at it for what felt like hours, but was probably only dozens of seconds. Blood flowed from numerous cuts on both of their bodies. Richter used the pain to fuel his attacks, no matter what happened, he would not fall here. Whatever it took, he would exact his revenge from Cinder.

And protect Ruby.

The sound of something shattering reached Richter's ears, something sharp ripped into his forehead and he felt the wetness of his blood flow down his face. A quick glance at his right hand showed him that Dyrnwyn was broken, a pathetic remnant of the blade still attached to the hilt. He glanced back at Cinder, whose weapons had also been shattered by their clash, her eyes widened slightly in surprise. Richter knew he should have retreated and planned his next attack.

Instead he set his face in determination and buried his right fist into Cinder's gut.

Blood expelled from Cinder's mouth from the fierce impact of his punch and then the amber-eyed fugitive was clenching her teeth. The next thing Richter knew, his head was snapping back and to the right via a nasty elbow delivered from Cinder's right arm. Pain exploded from Richter's left cheekbone, but he rolled with it, rotating in a full circle and smashing the back of his right fist into Cinder's right cheek.

The two continued to trade blows like this, neither caring for their well-being as long as the other suffered. Richter found himself surprised at his opponent's constitution, he never would have figured Cinder to be this tough.

She lashed out with a sidekick that was too quick for him to dodge. Her foot nailed him right between the eyes, causing stars to explode into his vision. Losing his balance, Richter fell onto his back. He felt a weight on his belly as Cinder straddled him, she then began landing fierce punches on his face, further disorienting him.

"Still think I'm a failure now!?" Cinder shouted at the top of her lungs at him. "Huh? HUH!?" Richter couldn't even respond, so furious was her pummeling, his head was jerked every which way with each hit.

Frustration built within his body, was he really losing to Cinder? The woman who had shattered his dreams and took away any sense of a normal life? The woman who was going to kill the girl he had fallen in love with after she was done with him? Was he really okay to let it end like this?

Quick as a striking snake, Richter buried the heels of his hands into Cinder's temples. The amber-eyed fugitive grunted in pain and he followed through with a nasty palm strike to her chin. The blow was so strong it uprooted her from her position on top of him, sending her a fair distance away. Cinder landed hard onto her back, bounced and rolled onto her right side.

Richter could taste his own blood as he struggled to his feet. He dabbed his right index and middle finger on the wetness he felt under his nose and examined them, they came back bloody. Across from him, Cinder was spitting up blood as she got to her feet with some difficulty.

"Look at you." She hissed. "Look at what I've made you become. You're nothing more than a savage monster!" Cinder roared, creating a dagger from obsidian in her right hand as she charged him. Richter noted this, she could no longer form any weapons larger than that, the battle had taken a toll on her. He winced, the same could be said for him unfortunately. They were both reaching their limit, this next exchange would decide the battle.

When she got in range, Cinder stabbed at his abdomen with the dagger. He was able to sidestep to his left to dodge it. However, with a swiftness that defied her fatigued body, Cinder followed through with a horizontal slash. Richter tried to do a short leap backwards to avoid it, but the stinging pain in his gut told him he had failed.

The amber-eyed fugitive tried to come in at an angle on his left, dagger pointed at his neck. However, the grey-cloaked demon was able to grab Cinder's right wrist with his left hand and halt her stabbing motion. He then planted his left boot on her sternum, knocking her onto her back.

Richter tried to capitalize, performing a short leap in the air and bringing his right fist down towards Cinder's ribs like a hammer. The amber-eyed fugitive was able to maneuver herself into a handstand at the last moment. Richter's fist hit nothing, but snow and dirt and his opponent performed an upside-down split and spun like a top, both of Cinder's heeled feet connected with the right side of Richter's face consecutively.

Fortunately, he managed to keep from falling. Cinder flipped back to her feet and charged him, seeking to strike him in the head with her right fist. At the last possible second, Richter managed to lean to his right to dodge the punch, grab Cinder's right arm with both his hands, and throw her over his shoulder. The amber-eyed fugitive was sent flying, crashing into the trunk of one of the trees and knocking it over.

Richter was already running towards her, when an explosion of aura and a bellow of pure rage sounded from where he had thrown her. Debris exploded away from Cinder as she leapt towards him at high-speed. Richter increased his own speed, clenching his right hand into a fist...

...And the two combatants collided like runaway trains, their fists finding their target on their opponent's faces. The blows were so strong it cratered the ground underneath them and sent them flying back, away from each other.

Somehow, Richter managed to land on his feet. Stars danced across his vision as he saw Cinder land on her feet as well. They glared intensely at each other.

"Why don't you just stay down like all the other monsters I've slain!?" Cinder shouted, forming another obsidian dagger in her right hand, though it looked like it took more effort on her part.

"I am no monster…." Richter replied, trying to pull whatever power he had left into his right hand, to form something, anything, to combat Cinder's weapon. He didn't have the energy left to do the dodging game. "….I am a person! I am Richter Bremen!"

Cinder dashed towards him and Richter mirrored the action. He willed the meager reserves of his power to do something, anything, to help him win this battle. The amber-eyed fugitive was less than twelve meters away and still nothing. Richter clenched his eyes shut, if he couldn't summon up anything, he was going to be gutted like a fish.

Digging as deep as he could, Richter felt the dragon stir within him. The grey-cloaked demon felt a sudden surge of power that bolted him upright and caused him to snap his eyes back open, just in time to see Cinder about to lodge the dagger into his throat. He felt the power flow through his right hand, felt something solid form in front of his palm and gripped it tightly. Without another thought, Richter brought whatever he was holding forward, aiming for Cinder's neck.

The sound of blades connecting with flesh filled Richter's ears as momentum carried them past each other. He found himself with his back to Cinder, a blade of grey flame gripped tightly in his right hand. The edge of the blade was dripping with blood not his own.

Looking behind him, Richter saw Cinder falter a step. The dagger in her hand was broke and as she fell to her knees, it crumbled to dust. The amber-eyed fugitive's left hand clutched her throat and Richter quickly realized that he had sliced it open.

It was over, he had won.

Almost giddy with the thought, Richter turned to face Cinder. With trembling hands, he aimed the point of the grey sword in his hands at her back. One stab through the back and he would get his much anticipated vengeance for all of the suffering she had put him through.

Just one more stab.

He was about to bring his right arm forward to deliver the killing blow, when something grabbed his right wrist. Glancing behind him, Richter caught sight of the battered form of Ren. The green and white clad huntsman's left hand was gripping his right wrist.

"What are you doing?" Richter demanded, his voice dangerously low.

"We need her alive." Ren said.

Richter looked at him like he had gone insane. "You want her to live? After all the terrible things she has done to innocent people? To ME!?"

"You just claimed that you weren't a monster. If that's true, then I want you to think about this for a moment." Ren replied sagely. "Cinder Fall is not working alone, she has had help from outside sources. These sources have been steadily working to destroy the stability of the four kingdoms. The information she has is invaluable to finding and neutralizing them."

"She has to pay for her crimes!" Richter snarled.

Ren's expression remained stoic. "And she will, but first we need answers."

Richter's first thought was to throw Ren away from him and finish what he started. However, the stoic hunter's words had penetrated his brain and he could see the logic behind him. There were greater forces than Cinder at work here and if the four kingdoms were going to survive, then he couldn't afford to squander this lead for them. As much as he loathed it, Ren was right, Cinder had to live.

He visibly relaxed and Ren, sensing this, released his grip on his arm. The grey blade he had constructed with his flames dissipated. Richter was about to use the bandages on his arms to wrap around Cinder's wounds…

And then the entire ground around them turned pitch black.

The grey-cloaked demon felt a presence so ominous it almost felt like it was physically crushing him. Something rose up from the black, a woman with pale hair and skin, dark red veins pulsed at the sides of her face. Her hair was up in a bun with three thick strands sticking out on each side. She looked similar to Alice, but older, more regal, and her presence to Richter was far more intimidating.

"Another time hunters." The woman said, "I still have use for this one." And with that, the woman sank back into the black, Cinder sinking in with her. Within seconds the black receded, giving way to the snow once more.

Richter looked down at his right hand, which was still trembling. The pale woman hadn't done a thing to him and yet, he couldn't stop shaking. That woman was bad news, he didn't know how or why, only that his gut instinct told him to stay as far away from her as possible. Who the hell was she?

What was she?

He turned to Ren, whose face was several shades paler. Richter had to give the stoic hunter credit, he kept his composure, but he could tell that the pale woman's appearance had filled him with dread as well.

"So….." Richter started, "Any idea on what the hell we just saw?" He asked Ren.

"She's Vale's biggest threat." A new voice spoke, a familiar voice. Looking behind Ren, Richter spotted a man with greying black hair and red eyes. He was garbed in a grey dress shirt, black dress pants and black dress shoes. The most familiar thing to Richter about the man however, was the tattered red cloak and the hints of a hunter weapon at the base of his spine. No doubt about it, this was Ruby's uncle, the one that used to train them when they were at Signal. The older hunter was carrying Ruby in his arms bridal style. She was still unconscious after using her silver eyes power.

"Instructor Branwen?" Richter said.

Qrow snorted in response. "Good to see you're still as formal as ever kid."

"Old habits die hard I guess." He replied, "So who was the mystery lady who almost made me shit my pants?"

Qrow's expression turned grim, something Richter was not used to seeing. Usually Ruby's Uncle wore an amused expression on his face as they tried to land a hit on him during their training. Most of the time they failed and to make matters worse Richter suspected he was drinking during half of their training sessions at Signal. To see him with such a serious expression was unnerving.

"Let's evac our wounded first. You're gonna want to rest up before hearing this." Qrow answered him.

"We're not going to like what we hear are we?" Ren asked him.

Qrow sighed, his shoulders sagging slightly, "No, no you're not."

 **VVVVVVVVVV**

 **A/N: And so the last chapter of "An Arc's Journey" Concludes. There will be an epilogue, but it might be a little while before I get the time to write it out. This chapter has shown me that I don't have the time to write chapters in a frequency that's satisfying to me. So I'm going to take a small break and recharge the ol' battery.**

 **My next plan is a series of short stories that are a maximum of one or two chapters and focus on the other members of Team RWBY. I may try to do some short stories on Team STRQ as well. I have a few ideas, just need the time to type them out.**

 **For everyone that has stuck with this story, I give you a genuine thanks. I hope it was an entertaining ride for you and hopefully I can find time to write up more interesting stories for you in the future!**


	29. An Arc's Journey 12

**A/N: It has been awhile since I've had time to work on this. I apologize for the wait. This is the last chapter to this current story arc. After this, I'm going to wait to see how the rest of volume 4 turns out before continuing with the next arc.**

 **For the first scene of this chapter, I listened to Fate/Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works 2014 song: "Vortex of Fate." From the start to 2:20. While working on it.**

 **For the third scene of this chapter, I listened to the second half of the song(2:20-4:31). While working on it. Helped me to finish the scenes, give it a listen while reading those if you want, for added effect ;)**

 **Ok time to wrap this arc up(No pun intended.)**

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Violet dust crystals on the stone ceiling provided an eerie glow to a basement held up by stone pillars. Pitch-black fluid completely covered the floor and the distant growls of grimm could be heard in the corridors beyond. A slender lady with pale skin and a long black dress strode across the room. To a bystander, she looked like she glided across the fluid covered floor rather than walked. Red veins spidered across her face and arms and red-black eyes gazed at the room's only other occupant with such an intensity even the most steel-willed of humans would have cowered.

Salem studied Alice's unconscious form, strapped to a throne that was made from bone. Vein-like tendrils were attached to the back of the throne, their bases planted in the dark fluid that covered the room. Salem frowned at the contraption, with her daughter's heart destroyed this was the only way to sustain her life and it would be far from painless.

The setbacks to her plans had piled up one after another. First Cinder had failed to take down Beacon from within and then she found and lost Salem's own daughter, all in one night. To add insult to injury, the partial owner of the Fall Maiden's power had also suffered a major injury to her throat and it was not known if she would ever speak again. The only consolation Salem felt was that the altered were still giving the kingdoms a lot of trouble

But she wanted more than that, she wanted the four kingdoms in ruins.

The pale-skinned woman extended her left hand towards Alice. She would not tolerate any more failure, she would not lose to the wretched race of man and their unbridled arrogance. She would break them down piece by piece, and she would have her revenge.

And it would start by getting her daughter back, one way or another.

Salem's crimson eyes flashed and the dark fluid travelled up the tendrils attached to the back of Alice's throne. When the fluid reached the throne, Alice's eyes popped open as she spasmed upright, screaming a terrible scream that echoed throughout and even beyond the lair.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Beacon's courtyard was bustling with the activity of huntresses and huntsman. Most were walking at a brisk pace to get to their destination, while others were downright sprinting to reach a bullhead in time for their missions. Some having just completed one mere hours before. The place had become less a school for hunters and more a staging ground for missions. Richter watched it all from a distance, sitting under the shadow of a tree near the outer edges of the courtyard.

A week had passed since Turthus and he was still getting used to seeing so many people again. Of not seeing dimly-lit rooms full of tortured souls or forests full of grimm. The fact that he could actually let his guard down had become an alien feeling.

Thanks to Glynda Goodwitch and General Ironwood, he had been able to regain a human appearance with Atlas technology and a bit of Glynda's magic. They could do little however to reverse his altered transformation. Even if he looked normal on the outside, the monster still lurked within, nothing would probably ever change that. It was just something he would have to deal with.

Once again he was dressed in his huntsman attire, though slightly varied, black jacket with grey lining, two ankle-length twin tails of fabric stretched out on the back of it. Grey pants and black shoes covered the lower half of his body. It felt odd to be wearing his old clothes again, like it was from another lifetime. In his hands was an old, but cherished handheld portable game console that he had had since a child. His fingers flicking across the buttons as he played a 2D platformer.

Richter sighed, this was normal, it was how he had done things before when he was at Signal. It was the same and yet, it was different now. He paused the game as the weight of his thoughts came barreling down on him, his eyes staring listlessly at the screen, for god's sake, he had consumed a dragon, could he really go back to a life like this?

Arms wrapped around Richter from behind him. "Hey." The all-too-familiar voice of Ruby Rose spoke, her tone soft.

He felt his previous thoughts of crushing doubt being swept away. "Hey yourself." He replied, reaching up to squeeze her arms with his right hand. "I'm surprised your uncle let you off your training."

"Professor Ozpin's sent him on another mission, so I got a bit of free time now." She revealed.

The two young hunters sat in comfortable silence for a good few minutes. Richter drew on Ruby's warmth like a drug. She was the only thing keeping him from bolting away from this place as far as possible. Eventually, he unpaused his game and began playing again. Ruby watched the tiny screen silently from behind him.

"I can't believe you still use that." She finally broke the silence, lifting a red eyebrow, "You know you can get way better looking games on your scroll now right?"

Richter snorted, "It's about the gameplay, not the graphics. Besides it's the only gift my mother gave me before taking off." He spared Ruby a slight smile, "Thanks for keeping it."

With her arms, Ruby gave him a reassuring squeeze. "When I thought you died, I wanted something to remember you by, something tangible you know?" The cloaked huntress chuckled. "Every time I look at that I see you in class at Signal, pretending to take notes while playing that instead. I'd have to throw my pencil at you to get you back to paying attention."

"Replace pencil with bowling ball and you'd be accurate." Richter responded without looking up from his screen.

"I was going through a phase!" Ruby exclaimed indignantly. "I thought being a professional bowler would be cool!"

Richter smirked, "You must hold the record for the most gutter balls in all of Remnant."

Ruby's response was to pout, "Not my fault they make those aisles so darn narrow." The cuteness of her expression distracted Richter, and he ended up dying in game. She chuckled as he let out a mild curse.

Both of the young hunters' scrolls suddenly started beeping as the alarms they had set for themselves went off. All humor dropped off of Ruby's face. "We should go. The burial service is soon."

Richter let out a long sigh as he stood up, "Yeah…"

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

The Arc family had gained enough renown from previous wars and conflicts to have earned their own section at Vale Cemetary. It was here that Jasmine Arc was to be laid to rest. Her coffin, silver with the family crest emblazoned on the top, was surrounded by family and friends who knew her in life.

The turnout was more than what Jaune expected. Apparently, his sister was pretty well-liked. It did little to ease the pain that welled in his stomach though. He lost count of the number of people who came to him offering condolences and prayers, none of them really stuck out to him, their faces a blur in his mind as his thoughts drifted elsewhere.

Jasmine had suffered immensely at the hands of Cinder Fall, Emerald Sustrai and the rest of their little cursed crew. They had wounded her grievously, both physically and mentally for one whole year and she still managed to die with a smile on her face, even as her own brother was the one who delivered the killing blow. That image of her smiling face had stayed with Jaune ever since, even now if he closed his eyes he would see it. Sleep was nigh-impossible at this time.

Ren, Nora, and even Pyrrha were at his side during the whole service. Team JNPR was finally back together again, but the joyous moment was severely dampened. Pyrrha kept squeezing his hand in reassurance and he squeezed back gratefully. Having her here with him now was a great boon. Ren and Nora too, he never imagined he would have friends like this when he first entered Beacon.

Ruby and her team also showed up as well as almost everyone at Beacon academy. Even Cardin Winchester came, which was a mild surprise, but as mean as he was, he wouldn't wish the death of a loved one on someone. Ruby had told him that Richter was also watching the service, albeit from a hidden place. The former huntsman still wasn't comfortable with reintegrating into society.

Violins kicked up, signaling the final part of the funeral service and the lowering of the coffin into the ground. Before that however, Jasmine's greatsword would be laid to rest on top of the coffin as per Arc tradition. Jaune looked down the path to see his father with Jasmine's weapons in his hands, his face seemed to have added a few more wrinkles since he had last saw him. He looked tired, like someone had dropped a truck on his shoulders.

As his father neared his position, Jaune felt emotion surge through him. He felt like he was being tugged by invisible strings as he stepped up to his father, partially blocking his way to Jasmine's coffin.

"Let me lay the sword to rest." Jaune blurted out.

James Arc's eyes widened slightly in surprise, before narrowing to sharp edges. "No. The laying of the departed's weapon falls to the one who is going to shoulder the burdens they had in life. You would know that if you paid attention to your lessons for more than five seconds Jaune."

"I'm well aware what the tradition is." Jaune hissed. "All the more reason I should be the one to do it."

The elder Arc scowled at his son. "You don't know what you are asking…."

"I know exactly what I'm asking!" Jaune suddenly roared, silencing everyone at the funeral. The younger Arc took a deep breath to calm himself down. "You weren't there for Jasmine's last moments, I was. I know EXACTLY what I'm asking, so let me do this. Please."

For a brief moment his father looked like he was going to scold him in front of everyone, but instead he sighed, his shoulders sagging. "Very well." He said, holding out the greatsword for Jaune to take.

The young Arc took the weapon without hesitation, it was heavy, but thanks to his training it wasn't something he couldn't handle. Slowly, steadily, he made his way to Jasmine's coffin, keeping his eyes forward. If he made eye contact with any of his friends, with Pyrrha, he might lose his resolve.

He placed Jasmine's weapon atop her coffin after what seemed like an eternity of walking. A Eulogy was delivered and people said their final farewells to his sister and then left. Jaune never moved from his spot in front of the coffin, his eyes on the greatsword, but his mind miles away.

Jasmine's last expression as the life faded from her, Cinder and Emerald's arrogant expressions. They kept cycling through the mind's eye of the young Arc, and he felt his blood begin to boil. They couldn't get away with this, he wouldn't allow it.

A warm hand on his right shoulder stirred him from his thoughts and he looked to his right to see Pyrrha's green eyes looking at him with concern. He responded by placing his right hand on top of hers and nodding slightly. Hours must have passed since he zoned out as the sun was now disappearing over the horizon, casting a golden glow over the cemetary. A quick glance around showed that everyone was gone, except for Pyrrha and him.

And one other.

Standing tall behind him, his hands resting atop his cane, was professor Ozpin. Beneath his curtain of silver hair was a solemn gaze aimed at him.

"I'm so sorry for your loss Jaune." Ozpin stated.

"Whatever you need, we're here for you." Pyrrha added.

Jaune looked at Jasmine's coffin, remembering the better times. The times where the worst thing he had to worry about was defeating her in video games. When he held illusions about becoming a great huntsman.

All that had shattered though, when he had to run Jasmine through to save Turthus. The life of a great huntsman would not be glamourous, he realized that now.

But there could be no turning back for him.

"In that case." He finally spoke up. "What I need is for you to stop lying to me, Professor Ozpin." The young Arc turned to face his teacher, to find that he older man wore no shocked expression on his face. "I need you to tell me what it was we saw in Turthus, and what we're really dealing with."

Professor Ozpin reached up with his right hand to readjust his glasses. "Very well."

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

 **A/N: I would like to thank everyone who has read this story, I hope you have enjoyed it.**

 **I may do some short stories about Team STRQ's younger days while I wait for volume 4 to finish. Depends on if I have the time, which is at a premium atm with the holidays.**

 **Speaking of which, happy holidays everyone! Hope everything goes well for you all.**


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